Growing Pains
by freakyanimegal
Summary: Growth Spurt Prequel. Thousands of years before Lloyd's fateful encounter, there was a teenage Aurion who wandered into an abandoned old factory, never imagining what he was getting himself into...
1. Chapter 1

**BEHOLD! THE PREQUEL TO THE INFAMOUS 'GROWTH SPURT'! TREMBLE IN FEAR!**

…**WHY IS THE CAPS NOT SWITCHING OFF?**

**IMPORTANT NOTE: Because I have a death wish, apparently, I am going to be putting up three new stories today. But I will update only ONE. ****I'm going to have a poll on my profile and I want people to vote on which one I'll work on. I'll continue the other two eventually, the second ****place one I'll keep updating after I finish one story I already have going. I have writer's block for everyone else so I figured this would be ****enough stress/excitement for me. If you like my stories please read the other two I just put up and then vote for the one I should continue..or ****if this is the only one that interests you, please just vote for it. Thank you. **

**Disclaimer: I own nothing. (Hey, how come it worked for THAT? O.o)**

**Growing Pains**

The factory on the outskirts of the city was dark. It was a large, abandoned, cryptic and creaking old building that still smelled of rust and fuel; the only remaining signs of life were the rats that scurried in and out of the place and the faded yellow tape that stretched across the doors reading: do not enter. Yes, it was an old, creepy and dangerous place; a place that mothers would warn their children not to go near, a place that the sane would avoid.

Teenagers, of course, did not fall under that category.

"I'm telling you, Kratos, I bet there's tons of awesome stuff in there!!!"

Yuan Ka-Fai, a half-elven boy of about sixteen years, was notorious for getting in trouble. Being a half-elf, he wasn't permitted to go to normal schools and truth be told most of his knowledge was obtained on the street. His pick-pocketing was infamous in the richer quarters, and his portrait hung in many police stations. So how it was this delinquent had managed to befriend the heir to the Aurion House of Knights, the son of the great and noble Lady Mira, was a mystery to many. Sure, Kratos was always the black sheep of the Aurion clan because of his status as- well, a bastard, but they assumed he was respectable enough not to associate with such scum.

Joke's on them.

"You sure Martel wouldn't kill us for checking it out?" the elder by one year asked as he jumped down the other side of the fence with his companion, adjusting his purple jacket.

"Oh it'll be fiiiiiineee," the half-elf grinned, putting an arm around the human's shoulders, "whatsa matter? Scared your mom will find out?"

"Aren't you?" Kratos answered simply, unable to hide the fearful expression on his face.

"…Well, yeah, but you're the one that has to live with her," he smirked before shuffling in his vest for something, "I know I've got it- ah-hah!"

He pulled out a knife he carried with him, grinning as he approached the factory building.

"Yuan, even if we do want to go in, how are you going to get the doors open with just that?" Kratos scoffed, crossing his arms over his chest in a huff of skepticism.

"Kratos, my dear human friend," Yuan shook his head as he examined the door, "you underestimate my awesome skills."

"Awesome skills my ass," Kratos rolled his eyes, "just like your 'awesome skills' when you tried to peek in Martel's shower?"

"Hey! That was- You promised you'd forget about that!!!"

"Woops," Kratos smirked, "now seriously, we can't get i-"

There was a loud metallic clang as the door fell open, dust billowing onto Yuan's already dirty and patched rags of clothing. Kratos gaped at hisfriend like an idiot before Yuan smirked and did a little mock bow.

"After you, Sir Aurion," he grinned.

"Shut up, coffee," Kratos glared as he walked forward.

"It's Ka-Fai! We've been over this!!"

Inside was, as stated, dark. Dark and creepy and nothing sensible people would go into. Still, they were teenage boys, not 'sensible people' and they went in. Why they went in, they really had no reason. They were bored; bored and rebellious against anything that was told to them was off-limits. That and curiosity was certainly a factor.

"They say there are weird noises here at time to time," Yuan smirked at Kratos as he nervously glanced around, "it's like a cat yowling, they say, except like a really big, demented kind of cat."

"Yeah, Yuan, because there's a giant cat in here wanting to curse us," Kratos rolled his eyes.

"Well you never now!"

"I swear, Yuan, you think up the dumbest-"

It was then that the weak, rust-worn pipe they had been walking on snapped under their weight and Kratos- who had been in front of Yuan- ended up falling into the darkness below.

"HOLY SH-!" he cried as he fell.

"Oh cr-! KRATOS!" Yuan called down, trying to back up enough so he wouldn't fall but trying to see as well. "Oh man-! Mira's gonna kill me! KRATOS!HEY! KRATOS!!!!"

* * *

The young human groaned as he sat up on the cold steel floor, rubbing the back of his head in an attempt to stop its throbbing.

"Aw man…what the-? Damn it, Yuan!" he called to nothing. "You have to jinx everything, don't you?! Mad half-elf…"

With a groan he climbed to his feet, wondering how he had survived the fall. He was down really deep…he didn't know they built it this far underground. Great. Just great. If he ever got out of here alive, he'd be late for dinner for sure and his mom would kill him herself. Kratos sighed as he looked around once more, finding nothing but darkness.

"Creepy…" he trailed, the hairs on the back of his neck standing on end.

Slowly his hand crept around the sword he kept at his waist. After all, he was expected to become a knight as all males in his family did, so a sword was a mandatory object to carry on his person at all times… even if most of his 'all times' consisted of hanging out with a half-elven thief, but who really cared?

"Where the hell is the exit-?" he started to look around.

_**Hello young one.**_

Kratos yelped loudly, turning and unsheathing his steel sword in one swift motion. That voice- wasn't HUMAN. Definitely not. He looked around frantically, seeing only darkness-

And eyes. Yeah, giant red glowing eyes with no pupils. What a wonderful way to kick off a weekend.

"What in the name of mana-?!" he cried, taking a stance.

_**A swordsman, hm? **_

Behind the eyes he could've sworn he heard slithering, twisting, movement; but he didn't choose to focus too much on what was BEHIND it.

_**Tell me, child, do you assume yourself to be any good with that weapon?**_

"W- Why?" he stammered, the color faded from his face.

…_**How boring. You're not a fighter at all. You barely look like you can stand, shaking like that.**_

Now, Kratos was many things. Most of which he was called, such as: bastard, obnoxious, rude, disrespectful, and of course by girls his age, talented and good-looking. However, the most important thing was his pride.

And this thing had just cut it down.

"Excuse me?!

_**Do you object?**_

"Damn yes I object!" he shouted, tightening the grip on the hilt. "Look you- you thing! I don't give a damn what you are, no one and no THING talks to me like that!"

_**Prove it then.**_

The eyes lowered down immediately before him, and Kratos was sure he saw something moving behind it this time, like a giant snake. Kratos flinched, his sudden spark of courage beginning to leave him.

_**Coward.**_

Kratos' eyes widened.

"HYAH!"

He charged in before he realized he had moved at all, his sword going in a straight downward swipe between the creature's eyes- or that's where it WOULD'VE gone if the creature hadn't moved. Kratos turned and spotted the eyes, racing toward it and attempting to hit it, though he couldn't see anything more of his body- but it was big, so it had to be hittable.

"Eat this you s-!"

The eyes widened, Kratos finding himself locked in their gaze. He froze in his tracks, the color fading from his face as his body simply refused to move. The eyes then narrowed, a low cackle coming from the owner as it stepped out from the shadows.

"Oh g…" he barely managed to choke.

It was large, the head like that of a cat and its body like some huge python, fur covering its entire body and four legs crouched in place as the bodyit supported twisted and moved on its own accord. The boy's heart throbbed violently in his chest as the creature began to circle around him, its head and body close to the floor while it looked at him from all sides, as if deciding whether or not he should strike him down that very second. Kratos couldn't move to watch it, but he looked at it as much as he could while not moving his head, the thick, undulating body almost as hypnotizingas its eyes had been.

_**With the right motivation you fight well…and your eyes….**_

The head came before him and it looked at him with one eye out the side of its head, boring deep into Kratos' own wine eyes.

_**I like your eyes…they're eyes that'll pierce a soul…in time. Yes, in time, you'll be feared.**_

"…" Kratos tried to speak, but couldn't usher a sound, "…"

_**In time you'll be a warrior whose foes will dread to meet…what say you, boy?**_

"G…Get away from me!" he managed to shout, forcing a glare, "Get-!!"

_**You are able to give me such a look…heheheheheh…then that settles it.**_

"S- Settles wh-?"

The irises flared one more time and Kratos felt- something. His back arched suddenly, his spine straightening violently and forcing his posture upright. He grimaced and groaned as his body stiffened and he felt a shudder work its way down from his head down to his feet, his arms and legsstretching out so he felt tension in all his limbs. Just as it came, it passed, and he found himself falling onto the ground.

_**Good night. **_

His eyes closed a second afterward , the last thing he saw was a rattle of a large snake sliding into the shadows.

**Like father like son, nay? n.n This is the prologue, so it's short as well, but I'll have the next one up soon. (wink) **

**Review if you'd like. n.n I was trying to improve on that scene with the Lestuk and I must say I'm pretty happy with how it turned out. (nod ****nod) **


	2. Changes

**Well...this one lost. But because I'm not THAT mean I'll give you the second chapter now. I'll continue this one and Identity eventually, but **

**Mithos and Yggdrasill takes priority. Maybe now and then I'll update this when I get the urge, but it WILL be continued. n.n'**

**I'm listening to Pokemon music…WTF IS WRONG WITH ME?! (hits self) It must be nostalgia…kinda like I'd been having for Growth Spurt, **

**which brought this story on…n.n'**

**Disclaimer: I own nothing. **

**Changes**

The auburn-haired male lay sprawled on the cold concrete floor of the complex, his back exposed to anything that may have passed by and

considered him a meal. He had been like that for about twenty minutes now, and his silent watcher continued to keep an eye on its 'prey' of sorts. A

few monsters had gotten close, curious if the young man was a potential meal, but only ended up becoming a meal for the larger beast that

crouched in the shadows eyeing the unresponsive male. A few minutes passed with no change and the beast slinked from the shadows again,

circling the boy and sniffing him, prodding him with its nose. It had been at this since the beginning of this world, and usually two things happened.

One, its victim would have a companion that would come and drag it away, only for its prey to return later in an attempt to free itself from its curse;

two, no one would come and it would have to take matters into its own devices. It wouldn't do for its challenger to wake up and face it immediately,

they would not be used to their new form, and so it would…postpone, the process. Well, not really…as soon as it fell asleep again, it would only be a

matter of hours. Though there was a bit of a side-effect that it found frustrating, being usually it liked its prey to be unaware of what was

happening…if he DIDN'T go to sleep relatively soon after this, well…

Still, this particular one- if he had a companion- had not been found yet and it was getting tired of watching it. A low growl mixed with a hiss escaped

it as it slunk back into the shadows and closed its eyes.

"Ah-!"

Kratos jolted upright, his face pale and his breathing strained while beads of cold sweat dripped from his flesh.

"Hff…hff…" he panted, looking around frantically, "what the-? Where…?"

He panicked for just a moment before shaking his head violently, bringing his hand to his forehead.

"What the hell was that…?" he whispered numbly, his eyes glazed. "I must have hit my head…"

Trying desperately to shake off his severe case of fright, he got to his feet and looked around, sheathing his sword- Wait. His sword was out? Did

that mean that…that thing had been real? He paled again and looked around in a panic, attempting to scan the area for the creature. He saw

nothing, but…

"Kratos-!!"

The human sighed in relief as his blue-haired companion ran into view, having just managed to locate his friend. From the shadows, the Lestuk-

though concealed- growled lightly. Sure, his companion came the instant he woke up…

"Yuan! Oh thank the gods!" Kratos sighed again, relieved. "You won't believe-"

"YOU IDIOT!" Yuan shouted, grabbing his friend by the collar. "You had better be fucking alright or your mother is going to KILL me!!! Are you hurt?!"

"If you don't let go of me right this second-!" Kratos growled, forgetting his previous fears.

The creature listened to them argue for a minute or two before they left, deciding they wanted nothing more to do with this place. Good, the victim

was unsure whether he had actually been encountered and they were going to leave…but they'd be back. Or that is…the human would be back. It

gave a low chuckle now that the boys were gone, feeling quite pleased with itself. All of its past fights had been boring, horribly so, but this one was

promising. Something about the young knight in-training had set its pulse racing. Those eyes were menacing, and it was thrilled at the idea of those

same eyes intensified with a lust for blood....

Oh yes, this would be fun.

* * *

"Oh man, it's dark out," Yuan groaned as they exited the factory.

"Mom's gonna kill me…" Kratos shuddered hanging his hide and slouching-

Then he let out a yelp, his back straightening violently as it had done before, forcing him into a 'correct' posture. Yuan flinched a bit and looked at his

friend, obviously startled.

"Kratos-? Hey, what's the matter?" he asked, frowning.

"I…I'm okay," Kratos said through gritted teeth, rolling his shoulders a bit, "I must have hurt my back when I fell…it hurt for a second."

Right? That had to be it…that thing wasn't really real, right? If it was it would've eaten him or something, right? He'd never heard of a monster like

that- nonetheless one that could talk.

"Really?" Yuan raised an eyebrow, looking his friend over once or twice. "You sure you're okay?"

"Y-" his voice cracked, "yeah."

"You sure?" Yuan said again. "You don't sound okay…"

"Yuan, I SAID I'm fi-" his voice cracked again, "-ine."

"…Maybe you should go home," he trailed slowly, unable to hide his concern.

"Y- Yeah," Kratos bit his lip, "I- Oh SHIT I'm late for dinner!!!"

He took off at a sprint from the scene, blurting out a good-bye to his half-elf friend as he made his dash for his home. In the dim light Yuan frowned

to himself, wondering if he should go after his companion to make sure he made it home all right-

"Fu-! I'm late too!" he cried, immediately ditching the thought she could run home himself.

Kratos was running home as fast as his legs could carry him, his only thoughts on what excuse he would use on his mother when he showed up

after dark and late for dinner with no explanation. His home had just come into sight when he staggered, almost falling face forward if it wasn't for

grabbing onto a nearby streetlight.

"Ah-!"

He leaned on the lamppost for support, gritting his teeth in an attempt to ignore the sudden pain that had stabbed into his legs. One minute he'd

been running fine, the next his legs had been screaming in pain, like the muscles were on fire. His hands clutched the pole tightly when suddenly the

pain stopped in his legs.

"…Whew-

And then abruptly picked up again in his arms.

He let out a stifled shriek as his grip tightened on the metal, tensing as if trying to relieve the pain in his biceps, which had began to bulge from

tension. However, just as soon as it started it disappeared, as with his legs. Aside from his hoarse throat and sweat covered hands, everything was

normal again. He stared dumbly out to space a moment before he slid down onto his knees, attempting to calm himself and his breathing. What was

happening to him? He hung his head and slumped down-

And then immediately jerked back up, letting out a yelp from the pain in his back.

"W- What the f- fuck?!" he swore, putting a hand between his shoulder blades. "Why does-?"

"KRATOS AURION!"

Immediately he forgot his plight in turn for looking up and seeing a very, VERY unhappy looking dark-haired woman standing feet from him, her wine

eyes glaring intensely down at him. A servant stood on each side of her, both of which looking between the woman and her son with a mix between

pity and fear.

"M-" his voice cracked again, "Mom-"

"Where the HELL have you been?!" she hissed dangerously, walking toward her son.

"I…look I- Um- well-" he stammered.

Both servants flinched as she smacked her son across the face and then hoisted him up by the ear, the young male letting out a yelp of pain as his

mother dragged him to their home and scolded him the entire way there. He would have attempted to plead his 'innocence' but he found with the

way every part of him was hurting it would be better just to go along with it this once. Soon he was seated at the table in front of a bowl of cold

food, sighing as he looked down at it. His mother sat down across from him, her arms crossed and her eyes still narrowed on him.

"You're not leaving until you eat every last drop, understood?"

Great. He was being punished…tomato soup.

He shuddered violently. Did his mother really hate him this much?

"M-"

"I know you hate them, that's why you need to start behaving properly," she hissed, a slight growl in her voice, "I'm sorry, Kratos, but I'm at my

wit's end with you."

Oh boy, here she goes.

"You neglect your training, you barely complete your homework, you-"

" 'Associate with half-elves, mess around with commoners, wander out after dark'," Kratos recited, his eyes down at the evil red fluid as he slouched

down again.

Mira slammed her hands down on the table.

Crap, now he did it.

"Kratos Aurion! I swear- and for god's sakes, sit up str-!"

"Agh-!" Kratos yelped, jerking into perfect posture again.

"…Straight…" Mira trailed, her hostility being replaced with a dumb suspicion, "…Kratos? What's-?"

"I- I'm fine!" he lied, forcing his attention down on the soup from hell. "My back just kinda hurt for a m-"

His voice cracked again.

"Minute," he finished.

Then they both froze.

"…Say that again," she said slowly, her brow furrowing.

The boy hesitated a moment before he slowly spoke the word again.

"Minute-"

Then he slammed his hands over his mouth.

"Kratos," Mira got up suddenly, her hands shaking somewhat, "I- I think you should go to bed."

Kratos said nothing, his hands tight over his mouth. His voice didn't sound like that-! Or, at least, it wasn't SUPPOSED to sound like that! It sounded

more like a man than a teen…

"Kratos," she said again, putting a hand on his shoulder, "come on, upstairs, you're not well."

Half worried for himself and half eager to get as far away from the tomato dish as possible, he listened to her and began to go up to his room. She

followed him up in silence, a deep frown on her face. Motherly instincts were never wrong with her, she knew something was wrong- and he knew

something was wrong too. So they made their way into Kratos' room and he went to close the door on his mother when she stopped him and

walked in with him, directing him to sit on the bed while she turned to closed the door. It locked with a 'click'.

Kratos sat on the bed shivering, covering his mouth and staring out with wide eyes.

"Kratos," Mira said with a frown, sitting down next to him, "Kratos, what wrong? Are you feeling sick? Did you hurt yourself somehow?"

He didn't respond in anyway, just shivered a bit as the events from earlier that day played in his head. That thing…it was real, wasn't it? Then it had

done something to him? What had it done to him? It was responsible for all of this, right? But what exactly-

'In time.'

His eyes widened violently.

"Oh n-" he gasped.

He let out a shriek, a sharp pain jolting down his spine more intense than the previous ones had been. Mira yelped as her son collapsed into her

arms, the woman frantically attempting to soothe the boy as he began to scream at the top of his lungs. His back was perfectly straight as he felt

the bones in his spine beginning to- to lengthen? Yes, that's what was happening, his bones were lengthening, and more pain developed in his

shoulders as he felt them stretch out as well, his shirt beginning to feel tighter and tighter against his flesh. His arms and legs began to stretch out,

the muscles beneath his skin rippling out and becoming pronounced.

Mira watched in numb horror as her child began to change in her arms, her wine eyes wide in a form of traumatic shock. However, as bad as she

was she was nowhere near experiencing the horror Kratos was.

He felt it happening, felt every single muscle and bone growing and lengthening, felt the structure of his face change from that of a teenager to a

strong-jawed man, felt the strange sensation in his throat as his voice dropped drastically in pitch, felt every part of him changing and maturing, all

in the intense pain.

"Oh dear gods…" Mira whispered in horror, her face pale.

He passed out as his voice died and he fell limply with his head on her chest. His shirt had ripped at the seams and tightly outlined a defined

muscular torso. His (thankfully loose) slacks luckily had not ripped but by no means looked comfortable. What had minutes ago been a seventeen

year old boy was a grown man, pale, exhausted and unresponsive in her arms.

She could do nothing but stare at him, her body shaking violently as she took in the new face of her child, the adult, mature, stern-looking face of

what had just been a teenager.

This was going to be hell of an ordeal.

**n.n Ehehehehe…. I liked describing what was going on, there. This kind of thing with transformations always gives me jitters for some **

**reason… X3**

**So, what think you? O.o'**


	3. Transition

**You can thank Lupanari for this chapter. She made me fanart for this on Devart (the link's on my profile) and in exchange I put up this **

**chapter. ****And yes, if anyone's wondering, this DOES mean that if anyone draws me fanart for ANY story another chapter is guaranteed within **

**the week. (Unless of course I can't get on the computer or family issues, etc) **

_**NEW POLICY NEW POLICY**_

**n.n So, enjoy and thank her for it. :D**

**Disclaimer: I own nothing. **

**Transition**

The blankets felt particularly comfortable that morning, and the scent of the cleaner used on the pillow cover was a pleasant, soothing scent of some kind of flower- he really never looked too much into the type. His pillow was particularly soft, and the mattress was likewise exceedingly comfy. When exhausted even the firmest sleeping space can become unusually comfortable, and even moreso when having been pained previously. Kratos- though awake- had yet to open his eyes and was stubbornly refusing to do so. He had been enjoying his peaceful sleep, and wanted nothing more than to slip back into it for just a moment or two…or perhaps it was some part of him knew waking up would force him to face what had happened. He gave a light groan and turned onto his other side, burying his face in his pillow.

"…Kratos?"

He noted the voice but ignored it. His mom wanted him up already? It was a Saturday, right? He didn't have schooling or training today…

"…Kratos…"

His eyes fluttered open, gazing dumbly at the sheets before directing his eyes up to look at his mother. She stood there in silence, biting her lip as she wringed her hands and some obscure emotion gleamed in her eyes. Kratos sat up and was about to ask what was bothering her when she quickly pressed a finger to his lips, shaking her head.

"Kratos," she said again with a deep sigh, refusing to move her finger, "do you remember what happened-? Nod yes or no, don't say anything."

Kratos stared at her a moment, wondering what she was doing and- and why she seemed shorter. There was a minute of silence as his tired thoughts came together and he remembered. His eyes widened and he looked down at himself. He stifled a scream by slamming his hands over his mouth, staring in horror at what had become of his body.

Oh dear gods-!!

"Kratos-" Mira started, attempting to calm him before he freaked out.

Yeah, like that was going to work out.

"Wh- what the hell-!?" he slammed his hands on his mouth again.

"You need to calm down," Mira said, putting a hand on his shoulder while she tried to keep her own expression calm, "Do you hear me? Calm down,

don't freak out-"

"Don't freak out?!" Kratos shouted, completely abandoning any attempt to hide from his voice. "L- Look at me-! LISTEN to me-! Mom, what the hell is

going-?! What happened to me-?!"

Mira smacked him across the face.

"Ow-! Mom, what the-?!"

"I SAID calm down," Mira growled, pointing a finger into his face causing the male to flinch, "panicking is NOT going to help this situation in any way,

do you understand?"

"I…I…b- but…" he stammered, marveled at how she was still so scary even when she was so much shorter.

"Now," Mira sighed deeply, "Kratos, do you have any idea how…this, happened?"

Kratos hesitated, still torn between panicking some more and breaking down in tears. How could she be so calm about this?! He had just-! Wait, where-? He frantically looked at the door, finding it locked, and the windows as well. It was his own room, and…what was he wearing? He hazily recognized them as some of the servants' extra pajamas kept in the storage room, but how had he gotten into-?

"Did you change me?" he asked slowly, blushing horribly bright.

"Yes, what of it?" she said curtly, crossing her arms over her silken blue gown.

"…I…that's…" he stammered, looking a mix between disgusted and embarrassed.

"I'm your mother," she scoffed, "I can change you if I want to. Especially when you are incapable of doing so."

Strangely, this didn't make him feel any better.

"But-" he shuddered.

"Now, look," she hissed, "nobody knows about- this, obviously- so keep your voice down."

"But I-"

"I've convinced them all you're not feeling well," she stated simply, closing her eyes, "but we're going to have to move you out of here soon, then, it

will be trouble if someone sees you…"

Kratos stared at her.

"What?" she scoffed with a slight jerk of her head.

"H- How are you so calm about this-?!" he started to shout again.

She grabbed his ear- a longer reach than she was accustomed to, but she did it nonetheless.

"Agh-!"

"I JUST told you to keep quiet, Kratos Aurion," she hissed, "and to answer your question, I'm your mother, I can do whatever I want to do-

INCLUDING control myself."

He twitched lightly, his eye twitching and his neck craned downward by her hand.

"Now, I'm going to ask you one more time," she sighed, "Do you know how this happened?"

Kratos stared down at her, his thoughts racing and yet yielding him no results. His panic had resulted his thoughts to a bunch of incoherent babble. Happened? He knew what happened, right? It was- it was-

That thing!

"…I…I think I do," he said slowly in a hushed whisper, "yes, I think I do."

Mira gave him another long look before releasing his ear and standing before him crossing her arms, her posture showing him quite blatantly she was waiting to hear it. Kratos took a few deep breathes before composing himself, knowing that he was going to catch hell for going into the factory- but that was the least of his problems now, wasn't it? Surprisingly, his mother did not shout. She merely looked at him with her blank expression as he explained what had happened in the factory and on his way home. Once he reached the end of his tale she simply sighed deeply, sitting down on the side of his bed as she shook her head, an action she usually did when she was stressed.

"So it was a cat monster?" she asked, looking up at him with her tired expression. "I've never heard of anything like that. Especially not in a city like

this…"

"I- I'm not making it up!" Kratos exclaimed. "What else can I tell you but the truth!? Sure, it sounds far-fetched, but I THINK we're a little past 'far-

fetched' here!"

"Are you yelling at me?" she hissed, narrowing her eyes.

He instantly closed his mouth.

"…Well," she sighed, "from the sounds of it, if you kill it you'll get back to normal?"

"That's what I gathered," he nodded with a frown.

Mira closed her eyes and tilted her chin forward, deep in thought.

"I guess that means there's only one thing to do," she stated after a moment, "you're just going to have to go and kill that thing."

"But-!" Kratos gasped.

"Not yet of course," she stated, "you're going to have to train a lot, you won't last ten seconds as you are now."

"What?" he said, his shock being replaced with offense. "I'm not THAT-"

"No, it's just you're not used to- this, yet," she looked him up and down as she stood up, "I will not have you going off to fight some unheard of

creature when you can't even run around without falling over."

Kratos gave her a blank, confused look.

"How do you know whether or not I-?"

"Your balance is off," she stated simply, lightly touching his chest with her index finger, "but you're not used to it, so I guess that is to be expected."

"My balance isn't-"

Mira gave him a light shove with her palm over his heart, the male yelping as he found himself leaning backwards and then hitting the floor when she elbowed him in the ribs.

"See, your balance is off," she said simply.

"O- Ow!" he groaned, lifting himself off the carpet. "How did you-!?"

"Just because I am not an acting knight doesn't mean I can't compete with them," she lectured as she rose a finger in the air, "all members of the

House of Aurion must be proficient in basic and intermediate forms of-"

"Fencing, horseback-riding, archery and fisticuffs," Kratos recited dully, rolling his eyes a bit.

She gave him a swift kick to the side with her heel.

"Ow-!"

"Don't be sarcastic with me," she hissed with a glare, "now, as I was SAYING you're just going to have to train some more- or at least get used to

being like this…."

"But I-"

"Hush," she said, "for now, we're going to have to get you out of here…"

"Then where am I going to go?" he asked with a frown, just now getting to his feet.

Mira smirked lightly.

"…" Kratos frowned, "I hate in when you do that…"

* * *

"Georgiana."

"O- Oh! Lady Aurion!"

The aging maid rushed over and bowed deeply to Mira, her graying curls sticking out from the dark blue maid's cape and her hands folded politely over her white apron. Kratos stayed silent behind his mother, as if trying not to be seen. He had changed into some simple- but publicly common clothes Mira had brought him and she managed to led him here without any difficulty. The servant's barracks.

"This man is going to be working for me for now on," she stated, gesturing back at Kratos (who desperately tried to look casual), "I want you to help

him get situated. Understand?"

"Certainly, Lady Aurion," the Head Maid bowed her head, "I'll arrange a place for him immediately."

"Good," she nodded, "I want him in section A."

Section A? Um…what one was that? He recalled there were different sections for the servants- living areas- but he never really paid much attention to them, to be honest.

"Very well, what is his name?" Georgiana asked, glancing up at Kratos.

"Aaron," she lied, "Aaron Toulta."

Kratos nodded while attempting to look like that was indeed his name, not something his mother came up with at the last second. What kind of name was that, really? Still…it sounded nothing like his real name, so he guessed that was a good thing…

"Very well, Mr. Toulta," the maid nodded, "come with me. I'll take care of him, Milady."

Mira nodded and then turned to leave, catching Kratos' eye briefly before leaving. She was going to check in on him later, for now he'd just have to try not to blow his cover.

"This way," the woman stated, Kratos following silently after her.

Luckily, he was more comfortable with the 'lower' class people because of his preference of hanging out with bottom-casters, so traveling around in a building full of servants lounging about, getting ready for work, or coming back from it, wasn't the shock one would expect for a young high-class male. Still, it was rather weird to walk through a bunch of servants- a fair amount he recognized- and not have any of them point and whisper at him. He wasn't exactly well-liked by either the servants or the nobility; partially because of his bastard status and his 'improper' attitude. It was still a bit awkward merely to walk. His mother had been quite right when she said his balance was off because of his change, but he had managed to adapt to walking fine enough.

He just hoped no one crashed into-

"AH-!"

Oh hell-

CRASH!

He landed on the floor with a rapidly apologizing young woman on top of him, Georgiana shouting out profanities at the younger maid who had tripped into him.

"Alexis-! Dammit, you clumsy, clumsy girl!!!" the woman shouted.

"I'm so sorry-!" she cried, pushing herself up and then looking down on Kratos.

Who had turned a very, very dark shade of red. This was the most contact he'd ever been in with a female, especially a fully grown one- what was she, twenty-four? Man, she was cute…

"I'm so sorry!" she cried again, scrambling off of him as she turned red herself, jolting her green eyes away from him while she swept a brown lock of

hair behind her ear. "I tripped…"

"It- It's fine," he stated, trying not to wince at the sound of his own voice, "no harm done."

"Alexis!" Georgiana scoffed, shaking a finger at the young woman. "If you didn't RUN everywhere perhaps this wouldn't happen!"

"I'm sorry!" she said again, wincing a bit.

"…Well, whatever," she sighed, "while you're here you might as well make yourself useful. This is Aaron, he's new here and Lady Mira wants him in

section A. Show him around, will you?"

The elder didn't even bother waiting for an answer before she simply walked off, leaving Kratos slightly unsure of what to do when Alexis cleared her throat and spoke up, smiling weakly.

"So you're new?" she asked. "All right then…I'm Alexis."

She stuck her hand out, Kratos flinching just a bit.

"W- What is it?" she frowned.

"N- Nothing," he shook his head before taking her hand, "I'm K- Aaron."

Luckily for him, his slip went unnoticed.

"Nice to meet you," she smiled, "anyway, I'll lead you to your section."

"Y...Yeah…" he trailed.

"Are you all right? You look uncomfortable," she raised an eyebrow.

"No, I'm fine," he lied, "I'm just a bit tired I guess…"

She looked at him a moment before shrugging and walking off, the age-mangled male following her. It was so strange that she would speak so casually with him…but then, he wasn't 'Lady Aurion's son' anymore, so naturally that rigid formality everyone else gave him would cease to exist, right? He looked around the area, still somewhat fascinated by the housing complex. It was like a big hotel, but they all lived there- Huh? What was that-?

Giggles?

"Hey there!" a female walked over with a few of her companions. "Alexis, who's the new guy?"

"This is Aaron," she chirped, "he's going to section A."

"Oooh, nice to meet you, handsome," the lead woman purred up at him.

Kratos shot bright red.

Sure, he'd been called such by his female peers before hand, but it was never this DIRECT… Maybe it was just teenage girls were a lot more subtle about such things?

"I…" he trailed.

"Where you from?"another asked, smirking flirtatiously.

"I-" he stammered, flushing red again.

"He's kinda shy, I think," Alexis said, glancing at him, "maybe you guys should lay off."

"Lay off!? You just want him all to yourself!"

"Excuse me-!?" Kratos blurted.

"No, no I don't!" she snapped back, flushing. "Geez! Don't you have a boyfriend already?!"

"Well, he doesn't have to know," the girl she addressed shrugged.

"Don't listen to her, she's a whore," another one scoffed, "but seriously, if you ever need anything-"

"Whore?!"

The three women began to quarrel with one another, Kratos staring dumbly at the scene until Alexis grabbed his arm and led him away from them.

"Sorry about them," she sighed, "they're like that…anyway, here's your section."

Sections were marked by large double doors and a letter above them, this one held true with a large bronze 'A' above the doorway.

"Section A, B and C are for guys," she stated, "D, E and F are for girls. It's kinda like a big dorm room, you see? You'll get your own room- just take a

vacant one- and the guys in here will be happy to show you how things work. You make your own meals in the kitchen down that way," she pointed

down the main hall, "and you'll probably get a schedule of your duties soon enough."

"A- All right, thank you," he nodded, "thanks."

"No prob," she winked, walking off, "my friend Travin should be in there soon enough, he'll answer any questions you have…ciao!"

With a wave she headed back down the hall. Kratos watched after her a moment as more people filed through the hall before turning back toward the doors and taking a breath.

All right, here went nothing.

Inside seemed to be more or less like a crude lounge, with doors with numbers on them lining the place on the floor and on the top of the stairs that were on either side. The place kinda looked like how Yuan described a prison with cells, though this place didn't seem as menacing.

Trust Yuan to describe a prison.

He walked in silently, glancing around a bit as he did so. He didn't recognize any of the servants in here, but none of them so much as shot him a second glance so he relaxed a little bit. He didn't know his mother had this many servants working for them- but then, they were second only to the Royal Family, as his uncle continuously reminded him in long, boring lectures about their 'Great and Mighty Legacy'. Oh wait- yeah, some of the palace's servants lived here too, right? Oh yeah, that would explain a lot…like why he didn't even remember seeing some of these people.

"Hey, you new here?" one man asked.

"What-? Uh, yes," he nodded.

The guy looked about twenty-five or something, but he held himself as if he was his elder- which, technically, he was, but at any rate…

"Nice, you at the Palace or Aurion House?"

"The Aurion House, I think," he nodded, trying to act natural.

"Ouch, tough luck," the man laughed, "Lady Mira's a real- well, she's kinda scary sometimes. One time she knocked my bud out with a frying pan for

back-sassing her."

"I can believe that…" he muttered under his breath.

"What?"

"Uh, nothing, that just sounds a bit…strange," he forced a weak smirk.

"She's a piece of work, I tell you," he rolled his eyes, "but her brat's not much better."

He froze. However, the man didn't seem to get any impression of needing to drop the subject.

"Her…brat?" he trailed with a frown.

"Yeah, his name's Kratos," he said witha s light grimace, "kid's a little pirck, I swear to the gods. He always skips his lessons and hangs out with

HALF-ELVES, can you believe that?"

"…"

"And he's a bastard in more than one way," he smirked, "little punk's got a mouth on him. Arrogant son of bitch, I betcha he just thinks he's better

than everyone else…"

"Have you even met him?" Kratos said, attempting to make it seem like an innocent question.

"A couple times," he nodded, "brought him some outfit he had to wear for a feast and he slammed the door in my face. Douche."

Kratos remained silent and turned his head to hide his expression. Okay, so he was a bit moody- but could he really be blamed for that?! If he remembered correctly, that outfit had ruffles. RUFFLES! For god's sakes, for the nobility or not he was not wearing something so STUPID!

"Hey, you all right?" the guy raised an eyebrow.

"Yes, I'm fine," he lied, "I'm just a bit tired."

"Oh, well whatever," he said, "If you feel better later look me up, me and a few buddies are going out for some drinks. You're welcome to come."

"Thanks," he said with a forced smile, walking away from him.

He had no intention of going, of course. His mother was supposed to try to talk to him later- somehow, and he didn't want to hang around with that guy anyway after that…

Besides, if his mother found out he went drinking he wouldn't have to worry about that monster anymore. Mira'd kill him herself.

Okay, what now? Alexis said something about just getting an empty room…so he'd just look for one, then? He looked at the doors and tried to discern if there was any sign they were empty without opening them. Luckily for him, there were. Nameplates were on every door that had an occupant, and there were a few without such labels. Slowly he opened one that was blank and found a small, functional room that consisted of a closet, bed, dressed and nightstand. The place wasn't even as big as his closest in his own room. Still, what did he expect? Servant's didn't live in luxury after all…

With a sigh he plopped onto the bed, wincing a bit at how unaccommodating it was.

He'd just have to deal with it for now…

* * *

He had fallen asleep at some point. Perhaps he really was as tired as he kept telling the people there he was. At any rate, he had dozed off and when he woke again it was dark outside the window. He would have probably slept straight on until morning if it wasn't for the lights flicking on and one of the guys from the section attempting to wake him up.

"Come on, new guy, up and att'em," he scoffed, clapping his hands in his face.

"Ugh…what is it?" he asked groggily, still half-awake.

"Lady Aurion wants to see you," he said, glaring down at him.

Lady-?

He barely managed to hide a gasp as everything came back to him. Where he was, what was going on, and what had happened to him… He sat up and shook his head, groaning a bit.

"What time is it?" he asked, now more grumpy than shocked.

"About midnight," the guy yawned loudly, "but what the Lady wants she gets. Hurry up, she's in the kitchen."

The guy left promptly after that, eager to get back to sleep himself after delivering his message. Kratos got up and half-heartedly tried to make his rumpled clothing presentable, heading down for the main hall. The kitchen was down that, right? Well, he'd find it no matter…

Sure enough, he managed to find the large kitchen with relative ease. It was dimly lit, but his mother was still easily seen standing by the far wall.

"I apologize it took me so long," she sighed, "I wanted to make sure we wouldn't be interrupted."

"Mom-" he started.

"Are you doing all right?" she stated, frowning. "You didn't get ruffled staying in this place, did you? Is there anyone I should fire?"

"N-…" he thought a moment, then shook his head. "No. Look, Mom-"

"I-….what is that?"

Mira turned and looked toward one of the pantry doors, where a cluttering sound was coming. Kratos tilted his head to the side and took a few steps forward, listening to the sounds of objects being shuffled beyond the doors.

"Is someone in there?" Mira frowned deeply.

"Let me see," Kratos said quietly, walking toward the doors as his mother lingered back.

Yup, definitely someone moving in there…

He opened the doors-

CRASH!

"I- I didn't do it!!! It isn't what it looks like, really! I wasn't taking any-!"

"Yuan?" Kratos stared.

Sure enough, the young half-elf had been attempting to make off with some of the food and dropped his loot the second the doors opened, having been caught in the act. Still, he didn't expect his witness to know his name, he didn't look familiar at all…

"Huh-? How'd you know my name?" Yuan glared. "I don't THINK I've robbed you before…"

"Uh…I-" he stammered.

Yuan attempted to kick him in the groin. Attempted, persay, because before either he or Kratos himself knew what happened Kratos grabbed his oncoming foot and simply yanked it up, the half-elf hitting the floor with a thud as Kratos held his leg.

"How did I-?" Kratos gasped, surpsied at his own reflexes.

"Ow-! You're going to pay for that you son of a-" he hissed dangerously.

"Who is it?" Mira demanded, coming up to see for herself.

"Let me go you-! Woah, Mrs. Aurion!?" he stared up at her in an almost comical manner. "What're you doing-?"

"I could ask you the same," she scoffed, crossing her arms over her chest.

"…Oh, right, um…can we talk about this?" he smiled weakly.

"No," she scoffed.

"I- wait a minute, who is this guy anyway?!" Yuan demanded, pointing up at Kratos. "What are you doing with him this late at night-? …EW! Mrs.

Aurion, isn't he WAY too young for you?!"

"Oh for the love of-! Shut your trap, Coffee!" Kratos snapped down at him out of habit, both disgusted and angered.

"Shut my-!? ….Coffee?"

Yuan's eyes went wide as Kratos covered his mouth, realizing his blunder.

"…Holy SHIT. Kratos, is that you?! W- What the hell happened?!"

Mira swiftly smacked Kratos upside the head.

"Brilliant," she hissed curtly.

Just great, hadn't he been through enough today?

**n.n Sklee. That was amusing…but not nearly as amusing as what I have planned…X3**

**Yuan Yuan, you little theif…XD **

**You likey? O.o'**


	4. The First Night

**Chapter four…..sklee. n.n**

**You guys got lucky, I just felt like writing this (wink)**

**Disclaimer: Nope, still own nothing. **

…**And still have no muse… (scratches head in confusion)**

**The First Night**

"So let me get this straight…"

Kratos sighed and tried to pretend he wasn't there, slouching in posture as he attempted to inch behind his mother, stubbornly ignoring the fact that even while doing that he was still quite obviously there. They dragged Yuan out of the pantry and into the kitchen where- after being scolded quite thoroughly by Mira- Kratos had to once again explain his circumstances. Yuan had stared up at him dumbly the entire time until the now-man finally reached the end of his explanation and glanced away, his cheeks flushing somewhat.

"I was right about the cat-thing, pretty much?"

Mira stared at him while Kratos jolted, seeing the smirk work its way into Yuan's face.

"Why you-!" Kratos started, snarling down at him.

"Wait," Mira cut him off, raising a hand in front of him, "cat-thing? You know about it?"

"What-? No, I just said there were stories about some kinda cat-call from that place-"

"So you did lead him there?"

"Well yeah but-…" he stopped, realizing his mistake, "wait, no-"

But it was too late.

"How _dare _you take my son somewhere so dangerous!!" she shouted, jabbing a finger into the young thief's face. "I should have you strung up in the square for this you insolent little-!"

"Mom-" Kratos started, attempting to save his friend.

"No! No, Kratos! He is not getting out of it this time! All the time's I've caught him stealing from us…honestly! You should be thankful that I've been this lenient at all!"

"But M-"

"Do not 'but' me, Kratos Aurion! I-!"

She was cut off when a loud whine followed by scratches came from the back-door of the kitchen, effectively drawing their attention. Mira paused in mid-scold before she walked over to the door and opened it up, looking down with an almost irritated glance at the visitor.

"Noishe, _what_ are you doing here?" she scoffed, tapping her foot.

Noishe gave another loud whine as he trotted inside, the gleaming stone on his collar catching the light as he walked in from the darkness. Ever since Kratos had found him with a broken wing in the back-yard, the protozoan had lived with the Aurions. About ten years now; and in that time they had to swap out his perch for a doggie-door, seeing as the protozoan had evolved to its next stage in that time. Kratos and Yuan both looked at Noishe, who was now staring dumbly up at Kratos.

"…Uh-" Kratos went to look away.

"Holy crap, Kratos! What happened to_ you_!?" Noishe gasped.

"H- How could you tell it was-!?" Kratos yelped.

"Oh please, you don't give me enough credit," here he whined, "I _am_ a protozoan and all."

As he ceased talking the 'gem' on his collar dimmed, then began glowing again when he spoke.

"But seriously, why do you look old now?" Noishe asked, his ears straight up as he sniffed the fidgeting Kratos. "I know humans grow fast but this is ridiculous!"

"Noishe, would you mind?" Mira rolled her eyes. "That's exactly what we're trying to figure out. Now, please be quiet or I'll take that stone back."

Noishe whined and scrambled back from her, shaking as bit as he tucked his tail between his legs. The stone she spoke of was the gem on his collar, an extremely rare piece of sediment that allowed its wearer to speak in any language- or simply speak. They were used mainly for protozoa fighting in the war, but due to the Aurion influence Mira managed to secure one for the arshis that her son had found and taken in.

"Do you know how hard it is to speak like that?!" Noishe protested. "Hardly anyone can understand what I'm saying without this thing!"

"Except for Kratos, but he's always been a freak," Yuan smirked, shrugging as he glanced back at his friend.

Kratos glared at the half-elf and the blunette quite suddenly slammed his mouth shut.

For all of two seconds.

"Holy crap, that is scary!" he cried, shuddering. "Geez, Kratos! Like you weren't terrifying enough!"

"Right, so what happened? Huh? Huh?" Noishe pressed, nudging Kratos with his snout.

"I am _not_ explaining again!" Kratos snapped, irritated and tired. "If you want to know, have Yuan tell you."

Noishe went to protest when Mira cut in.

"He ran into a monster in the factory that cast some sort of spell on him, he has to beat it to get back to normal," she explained, "which is why I met him here; so we could discuss our plan. Yuan broke it up when we caught him raiding the pantry-"

She shot the half-elf a murderous glare as she said that part.

"So needless to say we've gotten off-task," she said simply, closing her eyes.

"…So what _is_ the plan?" Kratos asked slowly.

"You're going to have to become a knight," she said simply, her face blank.

There was a moment of silence.

"W- Wait, you mean now?!" Kratos yelped, his face going pale. "I- But-"

"That's the only way you'll be able to get some training in with me without arousing suspicion," she explained, "so you're just going to have to pass the test and become a knight."

"There's a test?" Yuan stared.

Kratos and Mira both looked at him, wearing identical expressions that clearly portrayed they were a mix between offended and disgusted. Noishe stepped in to Yuan's rescue with a nervous whine/laugh.

"Yes, Yuan," the protozoan explained, "to get into the knights there's a written exam and then a basic test of skill. That, and you've gotta have the right paperwork, though I'm pretty safe to say you'll have that covered, Mira?"

"But of course," she smirked lightly, crossing her arms over her torso, "but it'll take a little time…so in the meanwhile, Kratos, just try to blend in here until I can arrange things."

"Hah!" Yuan pointed at his friend. "You gotta be a servant! Oh this is gonna be priceless-!"

"Why you little-"

Mira grabbed his ear again.

"Ack-!"

"That's enough, now listen up all of you," she glared at Yuan and Noishe, "no one is going to know about this, understand? No one."

"O- Of course," Yuan nodded.

"And Yuan? If you decide to blab about this…" she smiled faintly, "I'll see to it that the rest of your existence will be a living, breathing hell; are we clear?"

Yuan's color fled from his face and he nodded, glancing between her and her son as he attempted to hold back the urge to say something stupid.

Which, obviously, didn't happen.

"What if I just told Martel?"

Shortly thereafter Yuan was on the floor groaning in pain as Noishe shook his head over the young thief, wondering how it was it had come to this.

"A knight…" Kratos whispered under his breath, a frown on his face.

Sure, it was what he had been training for all of his life, but he never really put much thought into it being something…that he actually wanted to do. Maybe because he always thought it wasn't something he had to worry about yet- well, this situation totally dashed that thought process. Did he…even want to be a knight? What did he really want to do anyway? Still, to think he had to do this now, and…

"Kratos? Honey, are you all right?" Mira asked, gently shaking his shoulder.

"What-? Oh, yes, I'm fine," he nodded, shaking his thoughts off.

"Oh, all right then," she said, "then you'd better get back. You're going to have to do servant work until I can get everything arranged. I know it's dreary but you'll just have to make do. Now, as for you two…"

The woman rounded on Yuan and Noishe.

"Yuan, you are going to work here starting tomorrow afternoon," she said curtly.

"W- What?! Why-? You don't have a right to-!"

"It's either that or I have you beheaded," she smirked, her eyes narrowed.

Yuan froze.

"I just want you to keep an eye on Kratos, make sure he doesn't do anything stupid," she stated.

"And who's going to keep Yuan from doing something stupid?" Noishe laughed.

"You."

Silence.

"Say what-?!" Noishe gasped.

"Don't make that voice with me," she spat, glaring at the protozoan, "you come through here all the time at any rate."

"He does?" Yuan and Kratos asked in unison.

"Of course, the maids love feeding him," Mira smirked, "because he's 'sucha fwuffy cwute dowggie'. Honestly, they know very well he's not a dog but…oh well."

"Wait, Noishe, you sneak in to schmooze with the maids?" Kratos shook his head, gaping at his 'dog'.

"Well…." Noishe rolled his eyes, "…eheh."

"Noishe you sly dog!" Yuan hooted with a grin. "I wish I could do that!"

"All right then," Mira cut in, "everyone go home- or go to sleep. We all need to be up tomorrow. And Kratos."

"Y- Yes?" he looked at his mother.

She examined him briefly, her eyes scanning him up and down before she shook her head.

"It's nothing, get some rest," she stated.

With that she left, dragging Yuan out the door with her as the half-elf protested. Kratos watched them leave and he felt a strange emotion bubbling up inside of him. What it was, he couldn't say. Noishe trotted up beside him, nuzzling his head under Kratos' hand.

"What are you thinking about?" Noishe asked, positioning his ear and Kratos' nails.

"What-? Oh, sorry, Noishe," he sighed, scratching the animal's ear, "I guess…I Just feel a little…"

"Are you scared?" Noishe asked.

"What-? No- I mean, yes- I-" he frowned, "I don't know. I guess I am, but…"

He should be scared, and to some degree he was, but beyond that feeling there was something more akin to…liberation. As he was here, he was free from being 'Lady Aurion's brat', he was free from all the expectations held for him, he was free from the scrutiny, he was free from just waiting around until he had to take over the house.

"It's kind of…" he unknowingly smiled a bit, "great."

"Hm?" Noishe looked up at him.

"I- I- Nothing, it's just I-" he stammered, flushing a bit.

On the other hand, he didn't really know what to do. Not having something waiting for you or some plan drawn up already was terrifying. He didn't know how to be an adult, he didn't know how to make his way as a normal person- much less a grown man. So yes, he was scared.

But…

"I'm going to bed now, Noishe," he said, scratching his ear one more time, "so I'll be seeing you."

Kratos smiled weakly down at the animal before walking off.

"Hm...this might not turn out how we want it to," Noishe mumbled as the man left.

Kratos found his way back to his room easy enough, but he barely noticed or cared about that. He was too busy thinking. He looked down at his hand as he closed the door behind him, just taking it in. His hands were large, sturdy; thick-fingers and an all around masculine appearance. He made a fist and uncurled his fingers again, just to feel the muscles flex. That was another thing; the muscles. His arms were rather robust, weren't they? He had muscles in his younger body, of course, but they weren't this developed because he had yet to fully mature. He hesitated a moment and looked in the simple mirror in the room, looking his reflection up and down. Yeah, he was muscled…broad shouldered…deep-voiced and not to mention a very attractive face. Yes, through it all, he could come to only one conclusion:

"Damn, I'm a chick-magnet," he smirked.

He mentally smacked himself, shaking his head as he backed away from the glass.

No, no! He shouldn't be thinking like that! This was bad! He needed to get back to normal! Right? He couldn't just quit his old life and try to start off as some guy that just came from nowhere! He had a life to get back to-!

…Though…did he really want that life to begin with? Sure, he wouldn't be able to live in the lap of luxury or hang out with his friends the same way…but other than that, what would he be losing? Being the ridicule of the nobility just to take some job he didn't even want, and his friends and the only family he cared about knew anyway, so…?

"…" he frowned, his face down-cast before he shook his head, "ah, I just need sleep."

So he settled himself into the bed, closing his eyes.

And slipped right into oblivion.

* * *

It was dark. He was in the middle of some dark abyss where not even sounds reached him. He whirled his head around, attempting to get his bearings- if there were any- when the two red eyes flared open in the darkness. He let out a yelp as the snake-like body seemed to sprout out from the eyes and the head that had formed from nothing, the undulating stretch of fur wrapping around him tightly as a serpent would coil around its prey.

Before he could even shout the huge head was before him.

It spread its jaws wide and closed around him, swallowing him hole.

There was darkness again, all except for a silhouette standing before him. The dress-donned female slowly turned to look at him, her bright green eyes filling with tears.

"Who-?" Kratos started.

Then the creature formed behind her as well.

"Look out-!"

And swallowed her up without a sound.

* * *

Kratos jerked upright in his bed, sweat rolling off his forehead as he panted in a desperate attempt to catch his breath. The clock continued to tick uninterrupted, paying no heed to his sudden panic. It wasn't even six a.m. yet…

Kratos groaned and plopped back on the mattress, staring blankly up into the dark ceiling.

"What's going to happen to me?" he whispered as he closed his eyes.

**X3 **

**Reviews would be greatly appreciated! n.n As would any type of fanart, but that's being a bit greedy XD**

**Hope you liked n.n**


	5. Working for a Living

**Chapter five. Once again I stay up writing instead of study for my test…**

**Disclaimer: Own nothing.**

**Working for a Living**

"Yuan!?"

The teen glared up at his friend, daring him to speak. Was it really his fault he hadn't recognized him? Seriously, Yuan clean, dressed in un-torn clothing and with- even more shockingly- his hair cut? Kratos thought he was going to have a heart-attack.

"Your- 'Lady Aurion' decided that I needed to look 'presentable'," the half-elf sneered, slumping down into a huff of frustration. "You won't believe what she went through to get her way with this…"

"Oh yeah," Kratos frowned, "They do have wanted posters of you everywhere…"

"Y'know, most half-elves my age would be in jail right now for this," the boy spat darkly, "but since 'The Lady' wanted it, instead I get 'community service'."

Kratos stared down at him.

"She's calling it 'community service' for you to work here?" the man asked blandly.

"Well it is a punishment!" the boy snapped.

"Heh," Kratos smirked, finding the situation amusing.

"Yeah yeah, laugh all you want," Yuan rolled his eyes, "We're both stuck with this arrangement so we're gonna have to deal with it, I guess."

"You're the two new ones, right?"

The friends looked up when a tall brunette walked up to them, a welcoming smile on his face as he walked over to them.

"I'm Travin, Alexis may have mentioned me to you, right?" he pointed at Kratos. "Your name was Aaron or something like that?"

"Hm-? Ah, yes," Kratos nodded, trying not to look like he was bothered by his 'new' name, "She did mention you."

"I'm going to show you and the kid the ropes," he said, jerking a thumb at Yuan, "he's the delinquent serving community service, right?"

With this he sent a brief, suspicious glare to the half-elf, who flipped him off.

"Guess I was right," Travin rolled his eyes, "Look kid, you should be thankful. You lucked out big time only having to deal with this for punishment, guess you're lucky you're chums with Lady Aurion's brat-"

Kratos gritted his teeth and Yuan went to say something but quickly covered it with loud coughs, but the man had already noted that he had said something that had set them off.

"…Hey, Aaron, you all right?" Travin raised an eyebrow. "I get why he's pissed, but…?"

"It's nothing," Kratos lied, keeping a straight-face.

"Well, whatever," the man rolled his dark eyes, "Come with me, I'll show you guys what jobs you need to do. Pay attention all right? Because I've got stuff of my own to do and I'm just gonna give you a brief run-down. Need help after that, tough, you're on your own."

"Got it," Kratos nodded, Yuan just mumbled grumpily under his breath.

They followed Alexis' friend through the complex and after traveling bit, found themselves at Kratos' home.

"You guys got bad luck, you're stuck at the Aurion House," Travin smirked back at them, "You probably know your way around here, half-elf, but you're gonna be watched like a hawk."

"I have a name, you know!" Yuan snapped, glaring up at him.

"It's either 'half-elf' or 'punk'," he said with a shrug.

"Punk, then!"

"Right, well anyway _punk,_ you're gonna be watched like a hawk and don't think you're gonna be sneaking off to see your friend, apparently he's sick with something bad."

"What?" Kratos said, a bit surprised at this.

Well then, thinking about it…of course there would be some sort of story like that. Come to think of it, his mother did mention she told the servants he was ill. That was the cover-story, then that he had a very bad illness and couldn't come out… It almost made him want to roll his eyes, thinking of how people were being told he was sick in bed when they were talking right to him. Especially seeing as how they were talking to him, _about _him, and not in any way that was near the boundaries of 'pleasant'. It made him mad, naturally, but there wasn't anything he could really do about it… What did he care about what they thought anyway? He had his friends, he didn't need their approval. Eventually they'd all be kissing his feet anyway, once he took over the house…though he did note that with a bit of a grudging emotion.

"You're gonna be working outside for the most part," Travin said, "Punk, you get to do 'sanitary' work."

Yuan stared blankly at him.

"I don't like the sound of that, would you mind elaborating?"

"There are several dumpsters situated around the manor," the man smirked, "Lady Aurion wants you to take care of the garbage."

Yuan's eye twitched.

"That bitch…" he hissed under his breath.

Kratos winced. There was an awful lot of waste, being as large as the establishment was, and he had seen how gross some of them did get… His mother must have really been pissed with Yuan, to have him doing that.

"Then once you're done with that, you get to start cleaning the chimneys," Travin grinned.

"I'm going to kill her," Yuan's eye twitched.

"You on the other hand, are with me," Travin pointed at Kratos, "We're doing yardwork. Groundskeeping type things."

Kratos stared at him blankly.

"…Manual labor," the man said flatly, "Lifting things, moving things, digging trenches…so yeah, hope you're not fond of your clothes, though they are servant-garb so I don't see why you would be."

Now of course, though physically fit through his training for knighthood, Kratos never really had done a true day's 'work' in his life. The idea of his assigned task obviously didn't appeal to him, in fact, he felt like he'd prefer doing Yuan's job. At least his was…well, dirtier yes, but not as…mainstream? The thought of doing something stereotyped as the 'common' laborer kinda irked his inherent pride. What could he do though? He needed to do what he needed to do…

"So yeah, let's get started," Travin said.

He didn't get to see much of Yuan, unfortunately, but he had his own problems. The first job was simple enough, it was moving bags of fertilizer and though it smelled a good amount at least there was no physical contact with the substance. Still, the constant lifting and carrying, plain endurance, wasn't something he was used to. Not to mention his balance was still a bit unstable. More than a few times he got weird looks from the other workers that quite clearly said that they thought he was not up to their standards. Kratos would grit his teeth and look away, focusing on the task at hand. Think of it as training, he told himself, if he could force the stamina to do something like this continuously all day, just think of how many strikes he could get in with a sword. Luckily he managed to get through this, but then they assigned him to digging a trench for the foundation for a new gate that was to go around one of his mother's gardens. All of it was tiring, but for the most part wasn't _that _bad, it kept him busy, at least. It was bearable…up until around noon. The sun was rather hot that day, and most of the men working had taken off their shirts at one point in an attempt to cool off. Kratos was reluctant to at first, but as the sun beat down on them he completely disregarded it in turn for comfort. What did he give a shit for anyway? No one knew it was him, and the others were doing it, it was just them working out here, right? Mentally, he was pretty much as exhausted as he was physically…and it wasn't even lunch yet!

"This sucks…" he panted under his breath, wiping some sweat off his forehead.

Training was hard, yeah, but at least it was fun, and usually it was in more…well, comfortable conditions. That and breaks, breaks were nice, if he got tired usually he could go ahead and break whenever the hell he wanted. Who was going to tell him no? He never gave people who did this enough credit…he'd only been at it for a couple of hours and he already half-wanted to kill himself. Peasants sure could be resilient…

Then he heard them.

He glanced back a ways to the side garden, where some of the maids were doing laundry. Really, that alone weirded him out. With all their technology you'd think they'd be able to make a machine that could wash clothes instead of using water tubs…oh well, he didn't care, that at least he still didn't have to do. But yes, some of the maids were out, washing the clothes in a few large water tubs outside, hanging them to dry, and still others tended to the flowerbeds. There were a few he recognized, but he didn't focus too much on that. What really got his attention was that a few of them were looking at him funny, giggling into their hands and whispering to their friends. Now, he'd observed maids gossiping before, but when it felt directed at him it was usually nothing like this…this felt different.

"Heh," a worker a few feet away from him smirked, an older man, "The ladies like you, new guy."

Kratos- who had been just about to dig the shovel into the dirt, miraculously missed the dirt and damn near toppled over, seeing as that phrase had managed to uproot him quite a bit.

"What?" he flinched, staring at the speaker once he reclaimed his balance.

"The chicks dig you," he said with a shrug, eyebrow raised.

"…"

Kratos shot a brief glance at the women and then instantly turned away, his head down as he felt a blush begin to burn into his face. Quite suddenly, he felt very, very…vulnerable. Naked, open…self-conscious, that was it. Like a million eyes were on him, watching his every minute movement…and several pairs were. He tensed and then rapidly began to resume his work, trying to distract himself with labor so as to ignore the women watching him. He blushed to the tips of his ears as he continued to work, suddenly very aware of every square inch of his body, especially his upper body, from which he had removed his shirt earlier. Ironic how it was that which he had done to make work more comfortable now made him even more uncomfortable. Maybe he should just put his shirt back on? That'd be the smart thing to do, right? He stopped and went to do so, only to get the attention of his fellow workers.

"What's the matter?" a younger man laughed, shaking his head. "Oh gods! You're _embarrassed?!_"

"What-? N- No," Kratos forced, his pride now at stake, "I've just cooled down a bit-"

"Nah, he's embarrassed," jeered another peer, "What are you, some kinda momma's boy?"

Momma's boy-!?

"What-? No! Of course not!" he blurted, his face burning red.

"That'd explain a lot, actually, he doesn't seem to have done much work before," sneered another, glaring at him, "You get in debt or something? Or you one of those pretty-boy rich-guys that got in trouble with the king?"

"Grr…" Kratos went back to work, putting his anger into his violent shoveling.

He gritted his teeth and glared down at the dirt as if that was what had been insulting him, his face scrunched up in a very intimidating look. Why were they so quick to cut him down!? Sure, he'd been insulted before, but it was always more or less behind his back- unless it was Yuan. He had always wished they'd say stuff to his face but now for some reason he kinda wished he'd have the fake-respect instead of no respect. …Well, whatever, they could say all the crap they wanted about him, in the end he'd just be back where he started and then he could boss them all around again… He let out a snort as he thought that, rolling his eyes. Yeah, 'cause that life was soooo great too.

And those damn girls were giggling again!

He glared out from the side, watching as the maids continued their job while at the same time kept gossiping amongst themselves.

"Oh he's sooo cute, isn't he?" one giggled.

"Cute? I'd go with 'hot'…" another smirked.

"He can dig up my trenches," purred another.

Just then, Mira walked into the entire scene. Kratos tensed and tried not to look at her, feeling extremely self-conscious all over again.

Of course it would freak him out for his mom to see him doing this, especially like this and all- Then, she had dressed him-he shuddered, pushing the thought to the back of his head in an attempt to keep his sanity.

"Lady Mira's out for a stroll…" muttered one of the workers.

It got very quiet as soon as his mother walked out, he noted. Then again, the servants usually did quiet down whenever either of them got too close. Especially with his mother, she was temperamental. So Mira strolled out with one of her hand fans, her wine eyes dangerously narrowed as she scanned the surroundings and the people in it. Kratos noted she eyed him just a second longer, but then continued on as usual. One thing he had to respect about his mother, she could definitely control herself when she wanted to.

"They finally shut up…" Kratos muttered under his breath, noting the maids had quieted.

They had not, actually, but they were too far away from each other for him to hear their hushed whispers and giggles. Mira on the other hand, was in perfect range. Just as she passed one of the groups, one maid had the misfortunate to voice her 'approval' of the new guy.

"I would be _his _servant girl in a second!"

"No kidding, just look at him."

"He's a sexy piece of a-"

Mira kicked the side of the washtub, knocking it over and splashing the contents across the grass, effectively dirtying the laundry and partially drenching the women.

"Ah-!"

"What the-!?"

"Oh dear, how clumsy of me," Mira said with a straight face, her eyes slightly narrowed.

The maids and workers alike stopped to gape at her, eying her warily as an uneasy silence fell over the entire grounds. Mira's eyes darted around at them for a brief second before her blank expression twisted into a scowl.

"And what are you staring at?! Get back to work!" she snapped, snapping her fan closed and jerking it violently at them to accent her words.

"Y- Yes your ladyship-!" the women scrambled to the fallen tub.

"Honestly, clean that mess up!" she snarled. "Clumsy, worthless little wenches!"

She unfurled her fan again and stormed off in a refined huff, fanning herself rapidly as she stuck her nose in the air.

"…Told you she was a bitch," someone said from by Kratos.

"Huh-?"

Travin grinned from beside him.

"It's lunch break, y'know," he said, "was coming to let you and the rest of the guys know, but I see you got to see one of Lady Mira's little tantrums."

"…" Kratos frowned.

"Hey, don't look so serious man," he laughed, "as long as you do your job she shouldn't snap at you too bad."

He wanted to say something, but that would have been all kinds of suspicious. As much as he…well, yeah, he did kind of agree with them, it was the truth, but it was still his mother…

Oh gods. Did that make him a momma's boy!?

No…no calm down, he sure as hell wasn't a momma's boy; if he was, he wouldn't be skipping out on lessons all the time and being a 'delinquent'.

"Feh, glad to see you're all dirty too!"

Kratos shook his head and looked down, seeing a grime and soot covered, very very pissed off looking blunette half-elf.

"Have fun?" he smirked down at his friend.

Yuan's eyes narrowed dangerously up at his companion.

"As soon as you're short again, I'm going to kill you," he hissed under his breath.

"I'm taller than you like that too," Kratos smirked, keeping his voice quiet enough for just the two of them to hear.

Yuan flipped him off, his natural response for when he had no comeback. Though in the future it would be a 'Why you little-!' along with a ball of lightning.

"Yeah yeah, let's just hurry and eat, I'm starving," Kratos sighed, turning to walk away, "Not to mention every muscle in my body is screaming 'kill meeeeee'…."

"Heh, as gross as my job was I didn't have to-…by the way, why aren't you wearing a shirt…?"

"It was hot," he snapped instantly, flushing bright red again, "Let's go."

They sat down on the ground a little ways away from the rest of the male workers, eating the meager packed meals they all had been provided by the barracks' kitchens. Yuan had no problem scarfing down the fare, having eaten worse things in his days of pick-pocketing, but Kratos did find it a little…well, unappetizing. A small loaf of bread and some semi-rotting vegetables.

"Whatsa matter?" Yuan asked through a mouthful, looking up at him.

"Nothing," he said, taking a hurried bite.

He couldn't complain. One, Yuan had to survive and much worse stuff than this….and two, Yuan would never stop calling him a 'spoiled whiny bitch' if he didn't. He was getting enough of that from the other guys just because he wasn't as used to working as they were…

"Hey you two, what're you doing over here by yourself?"

"Oh hell, it's you again," Yuan said flatly.

The brown-haired man laughed heartily as he walked over.

"Mind if I join you?"

Kratos and Yuan both went to say something-

"No? Great!" he grinned, setting himself down on the ground next to them.

"We didn't say you could-!" Yuan began, red in the face.

"Just wondering, are you guys hanging out because you're both new, or do you know each other or what?" he asked, his smile exchanged for a steely glare.

Oh hell….they'd made a mistake. Of course it'd look weird for an adult human to be hanging out with a teen half-elf… Crap. What excuse could he use to fix this up-?

"He fucks my sister," Yuan said flatly.

Kratos choked up a piece of food that had still been in his mouth, quickly masking it with a cough.

"Pardon?" Travin raised an eyebrow, an amused glint in his eyes.

"My older sister's human, we're half-siblings," Yuan lied, "He's her boyfriend. I make it a habit to annoy the hell out of him for it."

"Oh?" Travin's grin returned. "Hah! That's funny…explains a lot too, me and the guys were wondering."

"Yup, this is the asshole who'll probably knock up my sister," Yuan said off-handedly, patting Kratos on the arm, "the douche."

Kratos glared down at Yuan, who ignored him.

"What he means to say is I'll be his brother-in-law," Kratos said flatly.

"Yup, and of course, since I'm a filthy half-elf and he'll be related to me by marriage, you guys would just tell him to go sit with me anyway, and of course I'll be sitting by myself no matter what, right?" Yuan spat bitterly, his green eyes narrowed on Travin.

"…Okay, I get it, you want me to leave," the brunette sighed, getting up, "Fine, well…talk to you two later then, m'kay?"

With that he gave them a brief wave before walking off to join the rest of the group, the two friends watching him warily until he was out of hearing-range.

"…'He fucks my sister'?!" Kratos half snapped half snarled at his friend, glaring death at him.

"I didn't see you coming up with any ideas!" Yuan huffed, glaring.

"Do you even have a sister?!"

"As a matter of fact, yes, I do," Yuan huffed, "and she is human, so there."

"…Seriously?"

"Seriously."

Silence.

"Is she hot?"

Yuan attempted to punch Kratos in the face but lost his balance and toppled over when the elder male simply dodged.

"Ow-! Dammit-!"

"Y'know, these new reflexes have their perks," Kratos grinned slightly.

**LOOOOOOl. I dunno why, but that last exchange totally did it for me :D I stayed up writing this instead of sleeping for my test tomorrow…hope you realize that XD but I couldn't stoooop… . YAY! n.n**

**So yeah…um…you like? n.n'**


	6. Suspicion

**Chapter six n.n**

**Disclaimer: I own nothing.**

**I got off my butt to write this mainly because my cousin asked me when it was being updated . Here you go, Shelb! n.n**

**Suspicion**

Kratos narrowed his eyes, focusing on his current task. All right, remember what he had to do, think but react…

"Demon Fang!"

He smirked slightly at successfully performing the arte, watching as the surge of mana hit the make shift dummy he had created out of a broken barrel and several other discarded things. Training outside at the back of a shed wasn't exactly how he was used to training, no, but he had to do something and this was what he had to settle for right now. It was dark already, his spot illuminated by a single light that was attached to the back of the shed, but he had only been at it since a while after dinner, he needed more practice if he was going to pass the knight testing-

"Aaron-?"

Kratos, startled, whirled on instinct and brought his blade to the intruder's throat, both of them freezing in the dim light as the swordsman became aware of his onlooker.

"O- Oh! I'm…sorry about that," he coughed slightly, pulling his sword back, "You're…Alexis, right?"

The young woman sighed in relief and nodded as the blade left her throat, gingerly touching the flesh where the metal had touched her. Kratos felt like someone hand branded 'Ass' on his face, flushing a bit and looking away from her.

"I'm…sorry, I didn't mean to startle you," she said with a weak smile, "I was just wondering what you were doing, I noticed you left the building after dinnner and I…"

"Don't apologize, I got worked up," he sighed, rubbing the back of his neck, "Didn't mean to scare you."

"Oh no I'm fine," she smiled, her green eyes glinting warmly, "I've seen some scary things."

Kratos raised an eyebrow at her, curious, but didn't get any time to pry before she walked forward, looking him up and down. He tried not to look uncomfortable, as self-conscious as he was like this, but if she noticed he was nervous-

"What's wrong? You look uncomfortable."

…Okay so she did bring it up.

"Wh-? I…It's nothing," he shook his head, "I was just-..nothing."

"…"

"What are you training for?" she asked, examining his little 'training field'. "Are you going to enlist in the army?"

"I'm…going to try to become a knight, actually," he admitted, averting his eyes from her.

There was something about her that was….strange. She half made the hairs on the back of his neck stand on end, his heart beat….he wasn't sure if it was a good thing or a bad thing. It was almost like a crush, but also like he was being watched by some sort of hungry predator, like he was being stalked by a snake…and not in the 'hot' way, as at times honestly he'd think that attractive as any teenage boy would. She was…creepy, there was something wrong with her, though he couldn't for the life of him figure out what.

"Oh? A knight?" she smiled warmly. "Would you mind showing me some of your skills? If you don't mind I mean…"

He looked at her and felt his face flush.

"N- No of course I don't mind," he blurted without realizing he'd even spoken.

Crap. What was wrong with him? There was something fishy about this lady… Oh well, he said he'd let her watch so he should get on that. After all, he didn't mind showing off- oh crap, what if he messed up? No matter WHO it was, he couldn't take that blow to his pride with a girl watching him- No, calm down, just keep training like she wasn't there. He took a deep breath and turned to his target again, taking the stance he had been taught. Kratos dashed forward and performed several artes, sonic thrust, sword rain, the like…and truthfully he was performing them pretty well.

"Wow! That was cool!" Alexis chirped, clapping off to the side.

…Ah riiiiight….

"Thanks," he smirked slightly, his ego once again bloated via the single comment, "If you thought that was cool, watch this."

He turned to his dummy and prepped himself, somewhat nervous but confident as well. If he could pull a 'Light Spear' she'd really be impressed, but that was one of the ones he always had a problem with… He had to try at least, he'd never had a girl show this much interest in him- …Wait, what? No, what was he thinking? She was way too old for him, wasn't she? But then…

"Aaron? Is something wrong?" Alexis frowned, bringing a hand up to her chin.

"No," he shook his head, "Check this out."

He dashed for the dummy and put his body in the correct position, ready to hit the barrel up with the arte.

"Light Sp-! Agh-!"

He managed to slam it up into the air, yes, but somehow ended up face-planting into the dirt instead of rising up with it. Alexis let out a short gasp and Kratos swore as the barrel fell down and landed right on top of him, causing the male to swear loudly.

"Aaron, are you okay?" she cried, running forward.

"Y- Yeah," he huffed as he pushed the barrel off of his back, grunting as he pushed himself into a sitting position, "I…I meant to do that."

There was such utter silence Kratos was sure he could hear an ant sneeze.

Alexis stared at him for a minute or two, kneeling beside him on the ground. Kratos hesitated, flushing brightly as she smirked.

"You…meant to do that?" she giggled, a grin growing on her face.

"…" Kratos blushed bright crimson, turning his head from her, "Uh…"

Alexis burst out laughing, which did nothing to help Kratos' wounded pride. The man grunted and got to his feet, throughouly dejected as the woman tried to calm her laughing.

"O- Oh, I'm sorry! Really!" she said, getting to her feet. "I'm sorry, really, I didn't mean to-"

"It's all right," he sighed bitterly, "If I can't even do that I deserve to get laughed at."

"No, no," she shook her head, smiling still, "Look, try it again, I'll help you set the dummy up."

"Huh?" he blinked, turning to look at her.

"I'm sure you can do it, Aaron," she smiled warmly, the light reflecting strangely in her green eyes, "I…like watching you fight."

Kratos froze, staring down at her. It took him a minute to process what she said, but when he managed to speak he ended up with a senseless stammering, having to smack himself once to get control.

"Er…All right then," he said simply, rubbing the back of his neck, "I'll try again."

Alexis grinned, turning her attention to the barrel as she stood up, gathering up the objects that had been attached to it to make the dummy. Kratos examined her a minute before he rose himself and aided her, the both of them putting the dummy back together. He watched her a bit as they did so for those few minutes, feeling that strange feeling again. Though this time he wasn't quite sure if it was a bad feeling or a good feeling…

"There, try it again," she smiled as she backed up from the finished product, "I'm sure you can do it Aaron."

"…Thank you," he said somewhat sheepishly, then poised himself, "All right, let's do this."

He turned toward the dummy, focusing on it as he had the last time. All right, he just had to do it right this time, he could do this, right? …Sure he could, she said she believed he could…

No one had…ever told him they believed in him…

"Light Spear!"

Kratos performed the arte and to his surprise landed gracefully on his two feet, the barrel crashing behind him with several deep cuts in its surface. The swordsman turned and stared at his handiwork, blinking once or twice.

"I did it-?" he stared.

"You did it!" Alexis cried, clapping her hands. "Oh, Aaron, I knew you could!"

With that she rushed forward and flung her arms around him, Kratos freezing dead in his tracks. There was a second that felt like a year where they both froze and the maid jerked away, coughing and adjusting her apron with a light flush on her face.

"I….I'm sorry, I was just very happy for you," she smiled again, though this time more sheepishly.

"…I…no, it's fine…I…" he stared at her, still too stunned to really speak.

"Yes, well…" she flushed, looking away, "I really should be going inside now…sorry if I bothered you."

"N- No," he shook his head, "Not at all…thanks…Alexis…"

She sent him one last smile before she stammered and goodbye, dashing into the building. Kratos stared after her a moment, unsure if he was asleep or if that had actually happened.

"I saw that, Kratos," a voice said.

Kratos flinched and turned, blushing a bit more as Noishe trotted around the corner, his large white form easy to distinguish in the darkness.

"Saw what?" Kratos huffed, turning away from his friend.

"You like that lady don't you?" Noishe asked.

Kratos scoffed, flushing red to the tips of his hears.

"W- What? That ridiculous, Noishe, what the hell are you getting at?"

"Uh, right, sure…" Noishe sighed, "Look, Kratos, it's easy to see through…"

"Noishe, please," Kratos shook his head, "Don't be stupid. For one I'm not supposed to be like this, and that and…she's a maid, it'd never happen-"

"But right now you're an adult and a servant," Noishe huffed, "and it may just be me, Kratos, but it seems as if…you really are not in any hurry to return to normal."

Kratos froze, his mind drawing a blank for just a split second before he scowled.

"Oh really? And how do you know that, huh?" he glared. "I haven't said anything like that."

Noishe just looked at him for a moment, Kratos glaring back at him. This proceeded for a minute or two before the arshis sighed and shook his head, turning around with slow trots, his paws making little indents in the dirt.

"Look, Kratos, just do what you think you have to do," he said, "…but be careful."

"Careful of what? That cat thing?" Kratos asked, his glare faltering.

"Well that too…but something's up," Noishe hung his head, "Just be careful, okay?"

"…I will," he stated, but couldn't help frowning slightly.

With that his oldest friend trotted off into the darkness, leaving him alone once more.

"…Up?" he muttered to himself. "Besides my age being mangled by a giant fluffball, I don't see what's up…"

That aside, did it really seem as if he wasn't eager to get back to normal? …Granted he wasn't sure if that was what he wanted himself, but even if he wasn't sure, that shouldn't make it obvious at all that he might not really want to go back to being 'Lady Aurion's Brat'… This life sure wasn't what he was used to, no, but he hadn't been talked about yet…at least, not that he could hear, and that was a big enough change….

And as for Alexis-

"No way," he shook his head, "…I could do better than her anyway."

…But…

"Agh, I should just get some rest," he groaned, rubbing his forehead before walking in.

He could sleep on this for now….

Whether or not it was because of that, he wasn't sure, but later that night he had another startling dream. Once again he was in darkness, seeing the green-eyed silhouette as before, only this time the shape came into detail, showing Alexis standing before him. He stared at her, blinked once or twice, unsure of what he should say… Then froze when the creature from before sprung up behind her, as it had the previous time. He let out a shout as she stood completely still, staring at him all the while the snake-like creature unhinged its jaw and swallowed her up, its red eyes flashing…

"Ah-!" he jerked upright into darkness.

He took a few deep breathes and groaned, supporting his head with one hand. Was he going to have a nightmare like this every nigh-?

Wait.

…Why would he be dreaming about that thing eating her? Why not it eating him or…or his mother or Yuan, or someone he actually knew? What the hell was up with his dreams? With yet another groan he plopped back down on the mattress, staring into the abyss. What did Noishe mean that something was up? He had a bad feeling in the pit of his stomach… Feh, there wasn't much he could do anyhow. He'd just pass the knight test and then he could try turning that thing into sliced ham. Whether or not he did want to go back to normal didn't matter, he still wanted to kick that thing's ass for messing with him.

…Though this way he could earn it, couldn't he? This way if he became a knight he could work his OWN way through the ranks, he could do it himself, and no one could chide and say that he only got there because of his family…

Well, whatever happened, the first step to any of it was becoming a knight. He could worry about the rest of this crap once he had that out of the way. A tiny part of him told him quite clearly that he was just trying to give himself some time, but he quickly silenced it. He had enough on his plate right now.

"Might as well try getting back to sleep," he muttered to himself, frowning as he curled up once more.

After a few minutes he did actually manage to get back to sleep, and if he had any nightmares he did not remember them. The work day went much the same as it had the past couple of days, nothing much really changed. He did the work he was assigned and listened to Yuan gripe every time they had a spare second. No one much talked to him anymore aside from Travin and Alexis, as Yuan's previous statement about them avoiding Kratos because of hanging out with a half-elf proved to be quite true. Kratos didn't mind too much, though, the slight animosity he got from the servants very rarely had a chance to show seeing as they were always working. It was still better than the masked dirty looks he got as 'Kratos'…

"So how long till you get out of this dump- meaning I can get out of this dump?" Yuan asked at one such break, examining his lunch.

"Until I pass the knight test, you know that," Kratos sighed, looking over his own meal as they sat outside.

"So when are you even gonna take it? And what if you fail, huh?" the teen asked, glancing at his friend with narrowed eyes.

"Then you're in for this too," Kratos scowled at him, "now shut up, will ya? I'm not in the mood…"

He groaned a bit and rolled his shoulder back, wincing as he did so. He wasn't used to this kind of manual labor, not to mention he had developed a rather nasty sunburn the other day, and training despite that probably wasn't the smartest thing he had ever done.

"Well excuse me," Yuan huffed, glaring a bit, "What's a matter? Not used to working for a living, huh?"

"You know damn well I'm not," he hissed under his breath, "It's not like you ever worked for anything- well, never legally."

"Touche," Yuan smirked a bit, "but work is work y'know, just stealing is a different kind of work, it's just as hard at times you know."

Kratos rolled his eyes and went back to munching on his fare, trying to ignore his aching body. Though now that he thought about it, it was kind of surprising that he was only now starting to feel that. You'd think he would've started aching before he even started training last night…should he chalk this up next to his new reflexes? Though granted he had yet to really get a hold of them, at least he could move around without feeling like he was going to fall.

"Hey, by the way…" Yuan muttered.

"Hm?" Kratos shook his head, looking at him.

"You know that green-eyed chick talking to Travin over there, don't you?"

Kratos flinched and directed his gaze to where Yuan looked, finding that Alexis and Travin were deep in a hushed discussion, their mouths moving rapidly, as one would speak when panicked.

"…" Kratos frowned, looking between the two, "What's going on? They look bothered by something…"

"Huh-? Well yeah, I guess, but-" Yuan began.

Kratos got up and walked over to the pair, leaving his friend behind. Yuan scowled and then crossed his arms over his chest in a huff, glaring as his friend left.

"Don't bother listening to me Kratos, it's fine," he muttered under his breath.

"Hey, is everything all right?" Kratos asked as he approached Travin and Alexis.

"Oh-! H- Hi, Aaron," Alexis smiled, "Nothing's wrong, we were just talking."

"Yeah," Travin flashed a smile as well, "It's nothing. So how are you adjusting to the place, huh?"

"It's a bit hectic at first but you should get used to it soon," Alexis nodded, "but you shouldn't have to be here long, you are going to pass that test after all, right?"

"Test-? Woah, y'mean the knight test?" Travin blinked, then grinned. "No kidding! You didn't tell me you were trying for knighthood, Aaron."

"Huh-? Uh, yeah well…" Kratos murmured, rubbing the back of his neck, "I'm hoping to anyway-"

"You'll do great!" Alexis chirped, turning to her friend. "He was training last night, he's very strong."

Kratos, both embarrassed and pleased at the compliment, didn't notice the looks Alexis and Travin exchanged at that, but Yuan, though further away, noticed it well enough.

Something was up, he was sure of it now. That green-eyed chick wasn't normal, if her weird behavior wasn't enough there was the fact of her mana…. Maybe, just maybe he was bei8ng paranoid, but something wasn't right here….

He just prayed Kratos passed the test and got the hell out of here as soon as possible.

**Yaaay it's doooone n.n**

**Thanks for reading! n.n**


	7. The Test

**Chapter seven. Yaaaaaaay I actually updated it :D**

**Disclaimer: I own nothing.**

**The Test**

"Mom!" he hissed, looking around to make sure they were still alone. "Do you want to blow our cover-? My hair is fine! Leave it alone!"

He huffed and turned from her, attempting to undo the attempt his mother had done at 'fixing' his hair. It was pointless of course, no matter what anyone did, it always stuck up like this. His mother sighed, her wine eyes quickly scanning the preparation room to make sure they were still the only ones present.

"Did we have to get here so early? And what do you think they're going to say if they spot you here talking to me?" Kratos sighed, looking back at his mother.

"I'm your patron," she stated, crossing her arms with a slight huff, "I'm the one who selected you to participate in the test, why wouldn't I come to see if my investments have paid off?"

Once again her son sighed, rubbing his face with his palm and biting down on his tongue. There was no winning with her…

"I still have an hour before the written portion, you don't have to be hovering around me," he muttered, glancing at her.

"You expect me to just leave you to this?" she glared a bit. "You know that I am going to watch your skills assessment regardless of what you say, so you might as well just grin and bear it."

"Mom, I don't have a problem with you watching," he sighed, shaking his head, "I just don't want you hovering over me! I'm already nervous as it is-"

"Shush," she said, looking to the door.

"Shush? Don't shush me-"

She backhanded him and he nearly yelped when she put a hand over his mouth, looking to the door. Kratos' eyes widened and he pulled away, getting the hint to go quiet. There was a light knock at the door, followed by a soft voice.

"Aaron? Are you in there? The proctor told me you were in this room…"

He stiffened.

"…Who is that?" Mira asked, glancing at him.

"I- …just hold on, " he said.

Kratos opened the door and smiled a bit to see Alexis enter, a bright smile on her face. Mira's eyes instantly locked and narrowed on the maid, her expression one of suspicion and distrust.

"Alexis- what are you doing here?" Kratos asked, finding himself tense all of a sudden.

"I came to wish you good luck," she smiled, "Travin wanted to come too, but he was busy, so I came for the both of us."

"Oh…" he said simply.

"I can't believe you're taking the knight test already!" she grinned. "I mean…you haven't had too long to prepare and all…"

Kratos hesitated.

"Hm-? Oh! But I know you'll do great," she added, her eyes glinting warmly, "I've seen what you can do, you'll become a knight no problem!"

Mira cleared her throat, earning both of their attention. Alexis looked at her and then flinched, quickly giving a curtsy.

"I'm so sorry, Lady Aurion, I did not see you there…" she said, "I had heard milady was the patron for Aaron, but I wasn't sure how true that was."

"It's true," she stated curtly, frowning a bit, "Now then…who exactly are you?"

"Alexis, milady," she bowed her head again, "I know Aaron from the servants quarters…"

"I see," she said flatly.

"Milady?" Alexis frowned. "Did I do something to displease you?"

"No," she said, then glanced at Kratos, looking between the two, "Nothing. I was only here to grant my blessings to Aaron as well. After all, it will look bad on my part if I endorse a swordsman who doesn't pass this test."

Kratos swallowed a bit, wondering if maybe that was some kind of warning. It wasn't his fault, was it? Normally he would have had years left before he had to attempt this, he was doing this way too prematurely; how could she get mad at him for that then? Well it didn't matter….

It's not like he intended to fail.

"I'm certain he'll be fine, milady, if I may say so," Alexis said hesitantly, that weak smile still on her face, "Aaron is a …well he's no run of the mill fighter, from what I've seen."

"And what have you seen?" Mira snapped.

"Oh-? I just saw him training in the grounds after work…" she hesitated, "Is something wrong, milady?"

"…No, now then, I think you should be going," she stated.

Kratos looked at her curiously, wondering why it was his mother was so eager to get rid of her. Alexis hadn't said anything wrong, had she?

"Oh- yes, of course milady," she smiled weakly then looked at Kratos, "Good luck, Aaron."

He stiffened a little, smiling weakly back at her.

"Thank you, Alexis…"

The maid turned a faint shade of pink before excusing herself and rushing out. Kratos smiled gently a moment, staring at the door before he was brought back to reality by a harsh smack to the face.

No, really.

"Ah-! W- what the hell-?"

"What are you doing with that little hussie, Kratos?" Mira hissed, her eyes narrowed on him. "Who is she? What are you doing messing around with the maids?"

"Messin-? Mom," he scowled, glaring at her a bit, "I have not messed around with the maids, all right? I haven't 'messed around' with anyone, she's just- she helped me get adjusted, okay? That's it."

Mira eyed him for a long moment before huffing quietly crossing her arms and looking away, her face furrowed in thought.

What was her problem?

"Don't do something stupid, Kratos," she said, eying him again, "You aren't going to be like this very long, so-…just don't do something that might keep you from doing that to begin with, all right?"

He stared at her.

"What? What do you mean?" he frowned. "I don't underst-"

"Enough chatting, let's review until the exam begins," she said flatly, taking a seat.

"Review-? I know how to do this, the written test is not what I'm worried about-"

"Exactly why you need to practice," she snapped, glaring at him, "You are far too full of yourself. Now sit down and let's get started."

"Wh-…" he sighed, rubbing his face, "Fine."

The hour passed quickly.

Very soon he had entered the room where about two dozen others were seated, preparing to take the exam. Kratos rolled his eyes a bit, annoyed. What was this, grade school? Sitting in a room taking a test, oooh, so vital to being a knight, how the hell was this supposed to be anything useful?

He sat and waited, brooding a little until the forms were handed out. Apathetically he flipped the cover open, scanning the first question.

His eyes widened and he swore that his heart had jumped up into his throat and lodged there, preventing him from breathing.

They were battle strategies. A list of statistics, fake reports from different groups detailing positions, the number of enemy combatants, terrain, status…this- this was ridiculous! This was the sort of thing the generals would have to know, not a lower soldier! Granted, knights weren't exactly 'lower' soldiers but did they expect all of them to be tacticians?

Okay, get control of yourself, Kratos. Deep breathes, in out, in out..

All right. Think. Where should he start? The statistics would probably be a good place, he could hear his mother almost, chastising him for not being prepared…ugh…

Well there was nothing left but to do it…

By the time they handed in the papers Kratos was nearly about to fall limp onto his desk and stay there, feeling the throbbing headache coupled with the utter exhaustion.

Murder.

It was murder. Plain and simple. Why did they allow tests to be so hard? What was to gain from it? Hadn't they outlawed cruel and unusual punishment? What was with this?

Dear gods he felt like he could sleep for a year-

"All right, now listen up," a hardened, graying man in armor snapped loudly, standing in front of the room, "You lot are going to follow me, and I'm not to hear a peep out of any of you. Is that clear? You will keep up, you will speak only when spoken to, and you will do as you are ordered, am I understood?"

"What-? Where are we-" an equally exhausted participant asked.

He had been seated at the front, the soldier calmly kicked the desk over, sending him to the ground with a sharp thud.

"I said do you understand? Or did you not? Do I need to repeat myself?" he growled, stomping down on the man's chest.

Oh come on, how come he had to get stuck with the insane proctor?

"I- I- n-"

"I said do I need to repeat myself!" he snarled, pressing his foot down harder.

"N- NO! NO SIR!"

"What about the rest of you?" he snapped, glaring around the room, his eyes narrowed intensely. "Do the rest of you idiots get it, or are you even more stupid than this one!"

"No, sir!" the room chorused, Kratos sighing a bit.

"'No sir' you don't get it, or 'no sir' you're not idiots?"

They hesitated.

Wrong move.

"You are all a bunch of spineless rats! And you!"

Oh great, he was noticed. Kratos did his best to keep a blank face and looked at the approaching soldier, who had locked eyes on him. With a slight sigh he got to his feet, knowing full well if he did not stand at attention the man would force him to his feet and then slam him back into his chair in short order. The old soldier raised his brow slightly when Kratos stood before him, noting that the tester had been wise enough to remember this rule. That didn't help him much though, at any rate.

"I didn't hear a peep out of you," he snapped, glowering at him, at eye level.

"You said you didn't want a peep out of any of us, sir," he replied, trying not to roll his eyes.

"I said unless you were spoken to, rat," he snapped, growling a little, "Now why didn't you answer when I asked if you understood?"

"…"

"Why aren't you answering me, rat?" he snapped again, nearly making Kratos flinch.

"I know you'll get angry regardless of what I say, sir," he replied, honestly.

"So are you afraid of having people angry with you, then, coward?"

That word again.

Coward.

He gritted his teeth.

"No, sir," he replied just as flatly, returning the glare a bit, "It just irritates me, sir."

Oh he we going to get hell for that….

"Excuse me? Are you saying I 'irritate' you, boy?" he snarled, lifting his head up, so that he could glance down at Kratos, if only ever slightly.

Oh shit- uh- damn his mouth!

"Well?" he snarled.

"Sir, yes, sir," he admitted, preparing himself for the reaction.

"Well then, son, if I irritate you, you can have your chance to put me in my place later, won't you?" he said, his eyes narrowed. "We'll see if you're a man enough to speak like that, won't we?"

Kratos blinked and the old soldier walked back to the front of the room, ignoring him.

"All right, now, as I said," he scoffed, whirling around on his feet and scanning them all like particularly offensive vermin, "You are to follow me, in silence, do you understand?"

"Sir, yes, sir," hey chorused back quickly, Kratos deigning to join them this time.

After all, he'd already gotten more attention than he should have...

Then, he did wonder what the old man meant by saying they had to follow. Where were they going that they'd need to follow so bad? The training fields were just outside, why would they bother telling them so strictly to follow and keep quiet-

Wait.

…This facility was on the outskirts of the city…

He groaned, rubbing his face.

Of course…they were going to make them hike. They were already mentally exhausted, so they were going to physically exhaust them too, before they would fight. Those bastards. Put them down as low as they can go and THEN test how good they were with a blade.

Sadists.

The march at first wasn't too bad, really, until they got to the forested area. Their 'guide' didn't bother telling them what they were doing, just kept walking and snapped at anyone who hesitated to follow. It was then that it got more and more strenuous, going through a harsh trail uphill, and of course as luck would have it, it began to rain.

Oh yeah, there was definitely some kind of divinity, and it loved to torment him. There was no other explanation.

Of course the rain just made the path even more treacherous, but that didn't seem to irritate their tester at all. He continued onwards without any sort of hesitation, and when another tester slipped on a stone he responded by slamming him into said stone.

Yeaaaahh….this was the worst day of his life.

When they finally stopped, every muscle in Kratos' body was screaming out in pain. He was so sore, and his earlier exhaustion didn't help at all…feh, just what they wanted then, he figured. He needed to get in some rest-

"All right then…you first," the proctor snapped, his eyes locked on Kratos.

He suppressed a sigh. Of course. Because he'd went and run his mouth, now he was going to end up in even more pain.

"Sir," he nodded, feeling his voice crack.

He took slow, deep breathes as he walked forward, attempting to get some air back into his system. Calm down, he told himself. He needed to have a cool head so he could think, so he could focus, so he could fight accurately. Right. Calm. Take a few deep breathes…

To his surprise, it actually worked.

Huh. Whenever he tried that before he never could seem to do it…he wasn't even breathing hard anymore.

That was strange…

"Your name," the proctor snapped curtly.

"Aaron Toulta, Sir," Kratos stated the alias.

"All right, Toulta, tell me something," his eyes narrowed, "Why do you want to be a knight?"

Well that was a little unexpected.

"Pardon-?" He blinked.

"Answer me, Toulta!"

He hesitated. Of all the questions, he didn't expect to hear that one…so what should he say. Why did he want to be a knight? So he could train and defeat that thing and get back to normal. Huh, not exactly an answer he could give now was it? Besides, he didn't really want that, that's what is mother wanted.

He blinked. Well…that thought hadn't been so clear-cut before, that was odd. Well..

"I…" Kratos frowned, "I- …I want to make my own life, I want to make my own money, my own status, and my own identity. Becoming a knight is something I'll do for myself, and even if I don't, I'll find something else to make my life with."

The proctor raised an eyebrow and Kratos felt a little surprised by himself as well. How was it on a dime he managed to come to the conclusion that he'd been searching for this entire time? Still…

"Independence then?" the proctor smirked slightly. "You want to be a real man, hm?"

"I- …yes, sir," Kratos nodded, swallowing slightly. "Yes, Sir."

The proctor smirked, nodding a bit.

"All right then, now draw your blade and let's see what you can do."

Kratos nodded and drew the blade, looking at the hilt in his grip, his reflection portraying his face back to him. An adult, a man, yeah…yeah. He could do this. He was sure of it.

"Come at me, Toulta," the proctor took a defensive stance, "And we'll see if you're the man you so claim to be."

Kratos steadied himself, closing his eyes and taking a deep breath.

All right…no going back now.

He charged.

* * *

He plopped onto the bed in his closet- room- every muscle in his body screaming out in pain, accompanying the throb in his head.

With a groan he buried his face in the pillow, allowing his aching body to press into the comfort of the mattress, welcoming his tired, dead cells.

They said he'd know by tomorrow, told all the participants they would know. A messenger would be sent if they had been selected, sharply at seven in the morning, if not then…

Hell, he was not taking that test again. No way. That was final. He'd go and kill that damn thing by himself, he didn't care if he didn't train. What would his mother do? Stop him? Not let him try to kill it if he failed-

…If he failed…she wouldn't make him do it?

Well that wouldn't be a disappoint on his part.

Sure she'd be upset and have to tell everyone he disappeared or something, but it's not like they would care, but she'd still know he was okay, wouldn't she? Yuan would know, Noishe would know, and that way he wouldn't have to leave Alexis-

He coughed, shaking his head a little.

Why was his mother all worked up about her anyway? She was just a nice girl…woman, a nice, mature, beautiful woman…

A light flush brushed his cheeks.

He …really was an adult now, wasn't he? He could do this, right? He wasn't used to this work or anything, but he could… There was nothing bad about this life, really. Sure the living areas and the food sucked, but he could work his way up someday right? He could work his way up, he had the brains for it, he could get a better job, a home, someday a wife and kids-

…Maybe he was close to finding a woman anyway. Alexis was sweet, he didn't care what his mother said about her. She had been nothing but kind to him this entire time…

Why was he thinking this? Hadn't he already come to his conclusion? He wanted to make his own life, and he would never be able to do that …in his old life. So why was he still so unsure about this? Dammit, hadn't he already made his choice?

He sighed.

Well, it didn't matter much anyway…there was no point in thinking about it right now. He'd find out tomorrow. Depending on what tomorrow would bring, he would decide.

…**.There. (passes out) Finished. Whew. Well, next chapter should be fun….think I got about two or three more chapters. Well hope you liked it. n.n**


	8. My Own Life

**Chapter…eight? Yes. Eight.**

**Disclaimer: I own nothing.**

**My Own Life**

"Hey! Buddy, wake up!"

Kratos grunted and turned over in his bed. It wasn't one of his work days, why was someone waking him up? Come on-

A cold splash of water crashed upon his skin.

"Ah-! What the hell-!" he jolted upright, sputtering, shaking his bangs free of the droplets. "What the HELL are you doing you bastard-?"

"Well excuse me, sleeping beauty," Yuan huffed, his arms crossed over his chest.

"Hey don't blame the kid, that was me," Travin smirked, standing beside him and holding an empty bucket in his hands.

Kratos glared death at them and grabbed his blanket, wiping his face dry with it. He'd leave it to dry later, he was more concerned with being drenched.

"What was that for?" he snapped, glaring back at his two friends. "There had better be a damned good reason for-"

"The messenger from the Knight Order is here," Yuan said flatly, his face unusually expressionless.

Kratos flinched.

"What? Really-? …Oh," Kratos sighed, rubbing his face, "Yeah, I forgot about that…"

"So you're not going to kill us for waking you up?" Travin asked, one eyebrow raised.

"Put that bucket away or I'll make you wear it," he growled.

"So 'don't push it', okay, got it," he chuckled, putting the bucket behind his back.

"Well you guys get out of here so I can get dressed or what?" he huffed.

"What, you that shy?" Travin laughed, throwing his head back a bit. "You're a weird guy, Aaron. All right, fine, we'll meet you outside. Come along, brat."

"I told you to stop calling me that," Yuan snapped as the older male grabbed his arm, dragging him out.

Kratos sighed once the door clicked shut, looking around the small room a moment before walking over to the dresser and getting into his usual attire. Not like he had anything better. Still, there was an anxiety to him that he would have preferred not to have had. What exactly he wanted to hear, he wasn't sure. Either way, though…what he would do was still up in the air.

He met Yuan and Travin outside, his hair still a bit damp. They both looked at him and after Yuan made a comment on 'the poor little sleepyhead', they headed downstairs together to the main entrance, where the messenger had arrived. Once the messenger with the royal uniform was in sight, two others came into sight with him. Mira stood to one side of him, her eyes already locked on Kratos, on the other side another woman stood, also looking at him. Kratos' throat tightened as Alexis' bright green eyes followed him. Kratos gave both of them a small smile and went to speak, when the messenger cut him off.

"Aaron Toulta?"

"Y- Yes?" he nodded.

"This is for you," he handed him an envelope, "Your invite to the knighting ceremony is enclosed, as well as a document you can give to any clothing outlet in town to have suitable clothes prepared, no cost to yourself of course."

Kratos stared.

"Wait-"

"Congratulations, Aaron Toulta," he bowed his head a bit, "For a man of your status to achieve knighthood is quite an accomplishment. Lady Aurion certainly knows how to pick them."

Kratos said nothing, holding onto the envelope and staring blankly at the man, who had turned to Mira.

"Hm, I should say so," Mira smirked, pleased, "I told you I would not waste my time on someone unless I was certain of their potential."

He made it? He passed? He was going to be a knight?

Despite his earlier uncertainty, all he felt now was…happiness. He'd done it. He'd done it, he'd become a knight with his own skills, his own knowledge, without the backing of the 'House of Aurion' to push his passage into the ranks. His own skills had achieved this for him- achievement. That was odd. He'd never achieved anything in his life, never accomplished anything. So here he was now, finally…doing something right. He'd done something right, something to be proud of, something on his own…

A wide grin split his face.

"T- Thank you," he nodded, smiling, "I'll be there- well of course I'll be there, but I'm looking forward to it."

The messenger excused himself, leaving the group of them there in a bit of a stunned silence. Which broke immediately when Alexis squealed and threw her arms around Kratos, giving him a kiss on his cheek.

Kratos choked.

"You did it, Aaron!" she beamed. "Oh I knew you could! I'm so happy for you!"

His cheeks were burning red, and his tongue refused to cooperate with the words he was trying to say. Then again, he wasn't sure what words were trying to come out, seeing as his thoughts were barely in any sort of order in the first place.

Mira stiffened and Yuan narrowed his eyes, but Travin merely laughed, slapping Kratos on the back.

"Woah, way to go, man," he smirked, "Getting all the ladies and you haven't even been knighted yet."

"I-" he choked.

Alexis stiffened and then pulled away, flushing, smiling at him sheepishly.

"O- Oh…I…uhm…" she fidgeted with her apron, her head down, "I- I'm sorry…"

"N- No…that..that's okay," Kratos blinked, staring at her, "That's- fine."

"Well," Yuan interjected, "Now that that's over-"

"I know the outfitters you should go to," Mira cut in, her tone sharp, "Come along, they're open today."

"Wh-?"

"The ceremony is a ball as well," Mira closed her eyes, huffing lightly, "You'll need proper attire-"

"Wait, a ball?" Kratos blinked, searching the envelope.

Yes, that's what the invitation said….

"Oh, fancy, you need a date then?" Travin smirked.

Kratos froze.

"That's not required," Mira snapped again, "he can go by himself-"

"Excuse me a minute," Kratos cut her off. "Alexis, can I talk to you in private?"

Mira looked positively furious, but maybe that's how he got the nerve to say it. Talking like she knew what he wanted- it irritated him, in fact..it always had. He wasn't going to go alone if he didn't want to- and- and he didn't. He didn't want to. He wanted Alexis to go with him. Yes. He did. He wanted Alexis to go to the ball with him as his date. Yeah. Yeah he did- his throat tightened.

Okay so he was nervous as hell, but he- no. He could make his own choices now. So he was going to make them, even if his mother and Yuan were looking at him like that….

"To- me?" Alexis flushed. "I- yes, I will, Aaron."

Kratos smiled weakly and excused them both, walking off a bit with her.

"I- Alexis- uh-" he turned to her.

His brain went haywire again. Dammit! How did that happen? He'd been so sure, so confident, and now all of a sudden he was a babbling idiot again.

"I will," Alexis smiled, her cheeks flushed.

He stared at her.

"Uh- what-?"

"You were going to ask me to the ball, right?" she fidgeted, flushing more. "I will. I'd love to."

"I- oh- ..yeah…" he coughed, rubbing the back of his neck, "Yeah- well- …thanks..uhm…I – guess?"

She giggled, smiling up at him.

"You're so cute when you're embarrassed like that, Aaron."

His brain scrambled again.

"Uh-"

"Go ahead and go with Lady Aurion," she smiled, "Don't worry about me, I've got something to wear already."

"You- do?" he frowned.

That was a little odd…

"I haven't had an excuse to wear it," she flushed, shrugging a bit, "But I'll go with you for sure. When you get back later you can tell me when it is and stuff…"

"I- I…yeah, all right," he nodded, smiling lightly, "Okay then- I …guess I'll see you then."

"Yes….Sir Aaron," she beamed.

He choked a bit.

Sir…Aaron? Hm…not quite Sir Kratos but…he liked hearing it anyway.

Especially from her.

Oh well..back to reality for the moment, Mira wanted to take him shopping after all…

To say his mother was displeased with him would be an understatement, though the woman didn't express any of her irritation in ways those unused to it could see. He saw it though, the tightness in her lips, the narrow to her eyes. Yuan tagged along in his way, though he managed as always to make it look like he wasn't 'with' them. Though a few people gave him looks at any rate, most likely wary that he was planning to rob the lady walking ahead of him. It was the first time Kratos had been out in the city since his little…enhancement, and he felt odd noting all the things he had to look down at now rather then up. Though of course there was a bit more attention on him that he dared say he liked….

"Aaron," Mira's voice snapped.

"Wha-?" he said, distracted, having watched a woman pass the he was sure was swinging her hips like that on purpose.

"Stop gawking at women, it's hardly proper," she hissed just a bit, eyes narrowed on him.

Kratos resisted the urge to roll his eyes, frowning and then catching the eye of a young woman working a stall. She had been watching him approach and he smirked a bit, daring to wink at her briefly. The girl turned bright red and giggled, whispering excitedly to her friend at the next stall.

Mira scowled, but she couldn't reprimand him here, not anymore than she had, and he knew that. Still he supposed he should lay off just a bit, he did kind of have a date already…it just wasn't his fault the ladies couldn't keep their eyes of him, he thought with a smug smirk.

That was until Mira 'accidentally' stepped on his foot.

He stifled a curse, glaring at her, but she merely focused her attention ahead.

"We're here," she said flatly, "Let's go in and you can get something for you Knighting Ceremony."

Though by 'him' getting to choose something, it wasn't quite the case. Mira had nearly instantly decided on several outfits, forcing him into the changing room and nearly tossing them in after him. He wondered if anyone would get suspicious, but then again, she was his 'patron' at the moment after all. A noble wouldn't ever patron someone and then not make sure they looked the part, most nobles wouldn't be caught dead with something they put money to that wasn't up to top quality.

He tried on all of the ones he was given, though most of them he barely stepped out before Mira shook her head and shoved another garb into his arms. This seemed to go on for hours, though really it had to have only been maybe one, but that was still way too long by his standards. Why couldn't he just choose something that fit and get it over with? Who cared if it looked 'bad' or whatever…

Not to mention this latest one was a pain in the ASS. Sure the material was sturdy enough for being so fancy looking, but there were so many unnecessary trimmings. A small plate at the base of the neck with a gem set in it, looked like some kind of jewelry, and the long …what were they anyway? Not quite 'tails', looked more like some kind of swallow or something…

And so many gods damned belts!

He growled a bit to himself as he adjusted them, then finally allowed himself a relieved sigh when he got the damn thing fitted on right. It looked …okay, he guessed- …well actually it did look pretty cool, but he wasn't going to admit that to her.

"Are you done?" she called.

"Yes," he suppressed a sigh.

Quickly making sure nothing was out of place, so as not to incur her wrath, he stepped out, half-expecting to be pushed back in. However, his mother stared at him, scanning him intently.

"…Wh- what?" he asked hesitantly, wary of the look on her face.

"…Perfect," she said simply, a faint tinge of softness in her tone. "We'll take that."

Kratos tilted his head a bit, looking at her and then at another mirror against the wall. Come to think of it…he did look cool, really cool. The collar, the white and blue pattern, the swallow-tails and even the numerous belts all made him look pretty…impressive.

Huh, all right, maybe his mother had taste after all.

They met up with Yuan once they left, seeing as the half-elf would never have been allowed outside, and they made their way back in short order. Mira was oddly quiet, as was Yuan, but him being quiet at all was a pretty amazing thing in itself. Kratos wondered what it was that was bothering them, exactly, but had little time to think of it when they returned at the 'barracks'.

"Oh! Aaron! You're back!"

Alexis hugged him and he tensed up, smiling again as he looked down at her.

"I- I wasn't gone that long," he said sheepishly.

He glanced around briefly and confirmed to himself the cause of his mother and friend's silence. Seeing as Alexis was getting dagger-like glares from both of them.

"I'm so excited for the ball!" she smiled up at him. "Did you get some clothes?

"Uh- yeah, I did." He smiled, looking down at her. "So uh…I'll see you then."

Alexis smiled at him, lifting up on her toes and kissing him on the cheek. Kratos froze, staring off a bit, barely registering it when she smiled and waved goodbye to him, off to her late-day duties. Kratos touched his cheek, staring after her in silence, left alone in the common room with his mother and Yuan in silence.

..For all of two seconds.

"Kratos, what the hell?" Mira snapped, glowering at her son.

"W- what?" he stammered, shaking off his daze.

"Why did you ask that chick out?" Yuan eyed him. "You know you're not going to be like this too much longer, right? I mean, yeah if you were normal I'd totally be up for you keeping a hot chick around you, but this kinda seems like you're leading her on…"

He flinched a bit, then replied with a scowl.

"I am not leading her on-"

"Oh?" Mira glared. "Then what are you doing? You're not staying like this-"

"Who says?" he snapped.

There was silence.

"What?" Mira said curtly.

"I-…you heard me!" he snapped, his fists clenched. "What makes you think I even want to go back? Huh? You just assumed I did!"

"Krat-? What are you talking about?" Yuan stared at his friend, paling a bit. "Of course you want to go back to normal- right? I mean- you have to- "

"Why do I have to?" Kratos said a little more coldly than he intended, his arms crossed.

Yuan stared at him, his eyes wide. It was only then that Kratos noticed just what expression his half-elven friend was showing. He was hurt.

"Kratos," Mira snapped, "Think about what you're saying, you're not an adult, you're a teenager! You're a child, you-"

"I'm not a child anymore," Kratos said flatly, his eyes narrowed on her.

"Yes you are-!" she growled.

"Do I look like a child to you, mother?" Kratos snarled, turning to face her fully, looking down at her.

It felt as if the tension between them had been a fine, crystalline goblet, tilting back and forth on a thinning wire. It had been in danger of falling for so long and then quite suddenly it had crashed into the ground, shattering into oblivion. Kratos immediately felt a tinge of guilt but clamped down on it, forcing himself to hold his ground. He excepted her to scold him, shout at him, maybe hurt him a little-

"No," she said flatly her voice barely above a whisper, "I suppose you don't."

She turned from him and made her way to the door.

"Mother-?" Kratos blinked, unnerved by her reaction.

"I'll see you at the ceremony," she said simply.

Without bothering to look back at him she opened the door and then left, the door closing shut behind her as the curled ends of her hair bobbed in time with her steps.

"…Well, way to go, ass," Yuan snapped.

Kratos flinched, frowning and then turning to speak to his friend.

"Yuan-"

"I'll just go then too, huh?" the half-elf spat darkly, his arms crossed over his chest, his eyes glaring up. "I mean obviously you don't want me around either, if you're going to throw your mom right out."

He flinched.

"I- I didn't throw her out!" he growled, gritting his teeth just a bit. "She-"

"No you just destroyed her emotionally, that's cool, just fine," Yuan said.

"Shut- …" his fists clenched at his sides, looking away from him.

Count to ten. Deep breathes. He had done it before, calmed himself, when he was so worked up he could barely think. He could do it again, right? Calm down, think straight-

"What, you won't even argue with me?" Yuan snapped. "You're too much of an 'adult' to even tell me to shut up? Is that it?"

"Yuan-" Kratos shook a bit.

"I mean obviously you don't need me around either huh? Since you're such a big man?"

"I didn't say-"

"Well guess what, I think it's a little creepy to hang out with a grown man, I don't want people getting any ideas," Yuan scowled, heading for the door himself. "So if you're not becoming my friend again, I guess I'm out of the picture too."

His throat tightened again.

"Yuan-? I didn't say- Yuan, look, I didn't even say I was staying like-"

"Yes you did, you idiot!" he snapped, stomping his foot. "You did! Make up your damn mind!"

"Yuan-"

"Well? Did you even stop to think how I'd feel, huh? You're just going to ditch me because you get a chance to get some hot babe all over you-?"

"That's not it! Stop acting like a- child!"

The instant the words left his mouth he knew he had just done something horrible. Yuan's eyes seemed to widen in slow motion, and as they widened Kratos felt as if a knife was twisting in time with it into his heart.

"A child," he repeated quietly, his eyes narrowing again. "Oh. All right. I see…"

Yuan turned on heel, storming after Mira.

"Yuan- Yuan wait, I didn't-" Kratos started, trying to find something he could say that would remedy the situation.

"You want your brand new life, good for you, have fun living it!" the boy snapped.

Then he was gone.

Kratos stood there a minute, staring at the door, where the only two people that had ever mattered in his life had just walked out on him. He swallowed, his fists slowly clenching at his side.

Fine then.

If they didn't want to be around him then why should he want them to be around? Fine. It was his life anyway, his, not theirs, and he was finally going to live it how he wanted to live it. Let them do what they wanted.

He turned and headed to his room, bristling, not noticing the prying eyes the observed him in silence.

**Yaaaay …and…next chapter may in fact be the last chapter O.o' dun dun. Well it should be long if it is, hope you enjoyed it **


	9. Consequences

**Yaaaaay finally finishing this story. Alert the media.**

**Assisted with this chap by Symphoniafan, because I suck at fightscenes. Thanks :D**

**Disclaimer: I own nothing.**

**Consequences  
**

"So…what happened? You said that you went back and fought it; I thought you …you know, tried to get back to normal."

The spiky-haired Seraph sat laxly, his back against the tree as his gaze drifted to the twin swordsman and then up into the canopy. Sunlight filtered through the openings in the leaves which swayed gently, flickering the light from one place to the next. He felt the brown eyes on him, knew he was expecting an answer, but how to proceed from this point..

"And..Yuan and your mom, they…you fought with them and all, so what happened?"

"…I had it in my head that I had made the best choice," Kratos said, his eyes misting a bit as he drifted into his memories. "I was stubbornly proceeding with a life I thought I would have: independence, respect, and at the time …"

"So what happened then? Something with that…Alexis lady?"

Kratos closed his eyes, letting out a quiet sigh before turning his head down to observe his son.

They had already been talking all day, and the setting sun told that it was already late into the afternoon by this point. Still, the teen had been insistent, badgering him further into his tale everytime he decided that that would be an appropriate stopping point. Not only that but certain …scenarios he had tried to summarize, or skim over all together if he could get away with it. That wasn't to be however, as Lloyd seemed determined to wring every last aspect of his own experience with the age-manipulating demon out from him.

"Lloyd, perhaps the rest can wait for tomorrow." Kratos sighed, rubbing his face. "I'm weary of this, and it's almost finished anyway-"

"So why stop? Might as well finish it up now," Lloyd said, his eyes glued on his father.

"Your logic is impossible…"

"Oh come on Dad, please?"

Ah, the 'D' word again. It figured. Kratos closed his eyes, taking a slow breath.

"Fine, it shouldn't take too much longer at any rate."

Lloyd grinned.

"...That night, I attended the ball with Alexis…"

* * *

She was beautiful. That all he could think of, his throat tight as he escorted her to the dance floor. The knight ceremony of course had been interesting, he supposed, and he felt a distinct sense of pride in the accomplishment. However…the entire thing had seemed tense from his view, not that anyone else was tense, but more because of he knew his mother watched from the crowd. That knowledge that his mother, whom he had hurt like that, was watching him take on this false life- no, not a false life, a new life, he told himself. That was all, it was just a new life, his own life…

Still, he had hoped desperately the entire time that the proceedings would go quicker, wanting to leave and go back to his date as soon as possible. That was becoming the highlight of the night, he realized with a smile. Alexis, pretty as a flower, sitting there with her hand clasped on her lap, smiling at him.

He had managed to hide his anxiety when he took her hand, yet as they commenced dancing her found his nerves acting up, betraying him to her.

She tilted her head, laughing with that beautiful smile.

"Oh Aaron, you should see yourself," she said. "You look nervous as a schoolboy."

He managed to suppress a flinch.

"I- I'm just-"

"You're just what?" she smiled.

He swallowed, frantically tyring to think of something to save face. Luckily, he found it.

"It's hard not to be nervous when dancing with the most beautiful lady in the room, you see…"

Alexis laughed, a smile coming to Kratos' face as she did so.

"Oh Sir Aaron, you really are quite the charmer, aren't you?" she smiled, her eyes half-lidded.

His throat tightened again. Why was she looking at him like that? Just calm down- dammit were his palms sweating? Just-

"Actually…there's something I'd like to speak with you about…" she said softly, her eyes locking with him.

"Hm? What's that?"

"Something…in private."

He nearly froze. Private? What did she mean private? Was that some kind of code? Did that mean-? No, no just take it at face value..

"Private? …All right-"

She nodded, taking his hand and leading him abruptly off the dance floor.

"Alexis? Where-"

"Shhhh…" She smiled, lowering her eyelids as she looked up at him. "Trust me…it'll be fun."

He swore his heart stopped.

"A- All right…"

So he followed her from the ballroom down the stairs, down many flights, until she opened a door to one of the basement levels. Kratos frowned a bit, glancing at her and half awaiting an explanation.

"This area is…restricted I thought-"

"It is, but you're a knight." She smiled, linking her arm through his, rubbing his arm a little.

He choked a bit, feeling the heat flush into his face.

"So we can go down there, can't we? Besides, down there it will be nice and private…no one will bother us."

Kratos stared down at her.

"N- No one…." He repeated, his mind drawing a blank.

"Yes…no one at all…"

He gave in. Really, what was he supposed to do? She wanted to go get some privacy, why not? Besides no one would go down there, she was right, and even if- why shouldn't he, right? He was an adult; yes, he was an adult, a grown man, he could do whatever he wanted. Especially since she was so…well she wanted to go so why not?

She lead him by the hand down the stairs, through the corridors, deeper into the complex. Once more he hesitated, beginning to get a bad feeling twisting in his gut.

"Wait- Alexis why do we have to go down so-?"

"Because I want to." She smiled at him, a little glint in her eyes. "Because I…will find it….exciting."

"…Okay," he responded quietly, feeling meek all of a sudden.

She winked at him, tugging him down the stairs again.

The deeper sections of the castle usually served as dungeons and the like, but Kratos knew from his visits to the castle with his mother- and little tidbits from a sneaking Yuan- that there were types of warehouses down further. Large rooms where extra rations and supplies were kept in the event that the castle became surrounded during wartime. It was to one of those rooms that Alexis led him, though one that they entered to find surprisingly empty. Nothing but a large empty room the size of an arena, dust cluttering the floor.

"Oh no," Alexis muttered, her voice a whisper.

"What? …Alexis what is it?" he frowned, looking around. "Why- why are we down here? What's wrong?"

The woman didn't respond a moment, her fingers curled in at her sides as she lowered her head. Kratos frowned, scanning her back, unable to see her expression in the dark room.

"Alexis-?" he grabbed her shoulder.

Whatever had occupied her mind seemed to have vanished, as abruptly the woman spun and flung herself at him, kissing him deeply as he staggered back against the wall.

"Mm-!" Kratos' eyes widened, shocked by her sudden advance.

She kissed him mercilessly, knocking him to the ground as she sat atop his chest, looking down at him. There was a smile on her face, but it looked forced, and he couldn't help but notice how her body had begun to tremble.

"Just relax, Kratos, we'll have some fun-"

His eyes snapped open wide.

"Wh- What did you just call me?"

She froze stiff, her green eyes widening dangerously.

"I- I called you Aaron-"

Something was wrong. Something was very very wrong, what was going on? He tried to sit up, only for her to grab his shoulders and pin him back on the ground, straddling him.

"Kratos- yes, okay, I know who you really are, but so what?" she forced a smile again. "It doesn't matter, we're both adults, let's – have some fun-"

"What's going on-?" he tried to stand up again.

"N- NO!" she snapped.

She grabbed his hand, quickly and firmly planting it on her chest. Kratos stiffened, his eyes going wide, cheeks going flaming red.

"No, no just…let's just play," she said, the smile faltering briefly. "You-"

"Wh- wh-" he swallowed, slamming his eyes shut.

Something was wrong.

"No!" he snapped, jerking his hand away and sitting up, glaring at her. "What's going on? What are you doing? What are you trying to pull off? How did you know who I was?"

"Kratos don't you like me?" she blurted, her eyes wide and pleading.

Kratos shivered, his anger vanishing suddenly as he looked down at her. Like her-? …Yeah…yeah he..he liked her. He…

"…Yes," he said quietly, barely realizing he had spoken.

Apparently, whatever she had been expecting him to say, that was not it. She stared up at him, her mouth opening slightly in a look of awe before she shook her head, backing up on his lap.

"I- I do, that's why I want to know what's going on and-" Kratos frowned, his fingers curling. "…Alexis what's going on? I- ..I do like you, that's why I can't just- do that, you don't want to, I can tell. You're shaking…you're scared of something, of what? What's going on? Why are you doing this if you don't want to?"

"You like me," she repeated, her eyes downcast. "You like me and you won't just…take me? Why- that doesn't…"

"B- Because," he stammered, closing his eyes to fight the flush in his cheeks. "Because if you love someone you shouldn't do that to them if they don't want to- "

"Love?"

He froze again. What was he saying? Did he love her? He barely knew her, what was he talking about? Well he did like her, he knew that, but- …whether or not he loved her wasn't the issue.

"…A knight does not take a woman who is unwilling," he said quietly, repeating part of the oath he had been taught as a child. "I …won't do that. A knight protects those who are afraid…"

Kratos nodded to himself, looking at her, frowning. Her shoulders were trembling, her face was pale, and while something unnervingly warm was in her eyes directed toward him, there was obviously something else on her mind, something that frightened her. But what was-?

"You have to leave," she said suddenly, getting to her feet.

"What?" he blinked, thrown off by her sudden declaration.

"You have to leave, now, before he gets here. If he gets here he'll kill you-"

"He? Kill me?" Kratos' eyes widened. "Alexis what are you talking about-?"

"Well I have to say Alexis, you've disappointed me, for shame…"

Alexis backpedaled quickly, backing up into the room and staring in horror at the door. Kratos quickly got to his feet, unsheathing the blade at his hip.

"Travin?" Kratos stared.

The man that had helped him get situated in the barracks, the one that had introduced him to Alexis. What was he doing here? He hadn't been invited into the castle…

"Well you kept him here long enough, so I suppose no harm done," the man smiled, then glared dangerously at the woman. "Of course, you're still going to have to be punished for your little stunt there. Trying to get him to leave…tsk…"

Kratos shook his head, taking a stance between the trembling Alexis and Travin. He didn't know what was going on here, but he knew enough to know Travin didn't mean anything good here. If the man seemed intimidated by Kratos, he didn't' show it, if anything he looked amused. He tilted his head up, scanning him as if he was a horse he was considering buying.

"Good, you actually look like a real warrior you know." He smirked, tilting his head to get a different angle. "You look like a man capable of slaying a demon."

The swordsman's blood ran cold, his hand gripping on the hilt of the blade. What? What was he talking about…?

"Well then, I see no point in dragging this out, let's get straight to the chase, shall we?"

Suddenly above the center of the room a mass of glowing red light appeared, illuminating the stone chamber and making it appeared bloodwashed. The door slammed tightly shut, Travin walking calmly toward him as his eyes began to glow.

"You had me worried for a while you know, human, I was afraid you weren't going to come and face me. That's why Alexis had to watch you, you see, that's why she lead you down here."

Kratos flinched, whipping his head back to look at the quivering woman, who stood there hugging herself, her head down.

"Alexis...?" he whispered.

"I'm sorry, Kratos," she said. "I really do like you, I do, but I had to- I had..."

"Alexis sold me her soul a long time ago, you see," Travin stated laxly, walking into the room further as Kratos backed up. "It's really quite a delicious story."

He smirked, his teeth revealed in a grin that showed inhumanly sharp teeth.

"Her fiance went to war, the fellow was returned home, dying from his wounds." He smirked. "She came to me, pleading, 'oh please, save him, I'll give you everything I have'..."

Alexis stifled a sob, but Kratos' eyes were locked forward on the approaching 'man'.

"So I saved her dearest, and the funniest thing..."

"Stop- stop it, I'm sorry, I'm sorry I didn't listen-"

"Her dear lover had a mistress, she gave me her soul, and the bastard runs off with another woman. Doesn't that just figure?"

"What are you?" Kratos hissed, his teeth gritted to hide his fear. "What's going on here?"

"I told you, Kratos, she played you. She's been playing little egotistical boys turned men for centuries, making sure they always come back to face me."

Travin grinned, all his teeth showing.

"That is, if they're fool enough not to come running straight back. You had to be one of the difficult ones, of course, it just figures...oh well. It wil all be done with shortly."

Kratos choked, his eyes going wide in horror as the man doubled over on all fours, his body twisting in the time it took to blink, a long, snake-like body covered in fur, a catlike red-eyed head rearing up, long fangs bared in a hiss that could not be distinguished between feline and serpentine.

The monster from the factory. That thing from- the thing that had started all this- Travin was-? Why was this happening! He had to-

"Wait- Master please!" Alexis rushed past him, placing herself between them. "Please just-"

_"Fool woman,"_ the demon hissed. _"You know what happened the last time you tried to save a man."_

"He's not- he's just a boy! You said so yourself, he's just a boy, let him go-!"

_"Stupid wench!" _

Before Kratos could react the beast's tail had whipped around, slamming into Alexis and sending her sliding against the floor, the maid crying out in pain.

"Alexis-!" Kratos' eyes widened.

The serpentine body curled around, blocking his view of her, drawing his attention back up to the big cat-like face.

_"You can do nothing for her, she is bound to me, all you can do is try to keep yourself alive, warrior!" _

Like lightning itself the demon struck, his fangs going to gouge through Kratos' gut. WIth the strange inhuman speed he had acquired he dodged, whipping to the side and then making an attempt for its eye on reflex.

"_Good, good! Destroy me, warrior!" _

Kratos danced around the swipes and blows, finding himself too overwhelmed by his dodging to focus on attempting to get to Alexis to aid her. The demon snapped at him, venom dripping from the fangs, hissing as it hit the dusty floor.

This thing- could he even kill it? Could someone kill a demon? Why was it toying with him like this? Damn it if he hadn't been so stupid as to let himself be led down here like this...

It snapped at him and Kratos slashed just above the gumline, effectively severing one of its fangs from its mouth.

It shrieked, eyes flashing red in the darkness. He had the distinct feeling he had succeeded only in making him angry.

The demon hissed and struck like a snake, its teeth gnashing as Kratos rolled aside. He could feel its hot breath and felt its shadow pass over him. It twisted across the ground, its long tail lashing out as he dashed, vaulting over the appendage as it swung to hi himt.

He twisted around and slashed his sword at the long body but the creature moved like water, unnaturally fluid and smooth. He stepped back, his eyes glancing once over to where Alexis struggled to pull herself out of the way.

The demon struck again, this time with Kratos barely moving aside.

Then suddenly its massive head slammed into his left shoulder, sending him spiraling around to the ground with a grunt. He winced before his eyes widen and he rolled to the side, a large foot slamming down where he had just been. Gripping this sword he thrusted upwards towards the curved underbelly of the creature. His sword sunk into it half-way.

The creature reared, pulling the blade from Kratos' hands.

Frantically he scrambled away from the thrashing beast, his shoulder aching

Kratos twisted to the right, looking up as the monstser released a feline scream and lowered its head towards him. He paled, backing away as it slithered and crawled towards him.

_"Such a foolish boy, losing your weapon like that. Isn't that one of the rules of a knight, Kratos?" _It hissed, almost laughing, but Kratos could tell it was pained.

He noted the sword was pushed further into its belly as it brushed against the ground, surely it couldn't last much longer…

Its red eyes flashed and Kratos lunged to the side as it snapped at him. He stumbled, rushing across the room, his eyes darting around looking for something to use. A weapon- anything-

Then he slipped falling hard onto the ground. He gasped, the creature laughing above him and he looked back spotting the fang he had severed earlier.

It was nearly as long as his arm. Long enough, his mind practically shouted and he twisted around, grabbing it just as the demon screamed again and struck, its mouth wide open.

Kratos grasped the fang and threw his arm up, crying out as the hot cavity of the mouth engulfed him.

He felt the fang drive in, followed by the sudden jerk of the body around him. His hand was pressed up against the roof of the mouth and he looked up, seeing the fang completely embedded into the mouth of the demon.

Kratos shook then frantically crawled out of the side of the mouth and the beast groaned around him, its body slipping forward to the ground.

Kratos panted, sweat pasting his auburn bangs to the side of his face as he quickly got to his feet, backing up from the fallen panted, his chest heaving, then quickly whipped his head around, locating Alexis on the ground

He rushed to her, kneeling down and gently lifting her into a sitting position.

"Alexis-?"

"I'm sorry," she said softly, her eyes downcast and misted. "I'm sorry, I never wanted to do this. I didn't, I didn't, but ...but they were just men."

Her eyes teared up, closing them sharply

"I told myself-" she sobbed. "They were just backstabbing men, so I did it. I'm sorry, it was wrong, I know it was-"

Her body shuddered, a sob overcoming her as she buried her face in her hands.

"They weren't even men, they were boys, they were kids, I'm sorry. I'm so sorry-"

She broke off into sobs, Kratos' face softening, sadly drawing her closer.

"Alexis..."

A red glow illuminated the room further, the same red gleam as the orb in the ceiling, engulfing the body of the demon. Kratos whipped his head around, eyes going wide, before he noticed the same glow coming from his arms.

HIs eyes widened and he snapped his attention back to Alexis, who hung her head, unable to look at him.

"W- What? Alexis what's-"

"I'm bound to him," she said softly. "When he returns to Neflhiem I go with him. When he returns to this world I go with him as well..."

Kratos' eyes widened.

"What-? Alexis but-"

"Thank you for being kind to me," she said, a soft smile working into her face. "Most of them aren't, when they find out I tricked them. Thank you for..."

She was fading, her voice flickering, jerking, as the rest of her form began to contort as well, becoming less and less visible.

"Alexis! Wait- isn't there anything I can do? How can I free you? How can I stop him from coming back-?"

Her hand touched his cheek, a smile barely visible on her fading face. It was more like a smile his mother would give him, he thought to himself. She was centuries old, it had said, and she knew he was just a kid...how stupid he was...of course he was just a child to her.

"Someday he'll truly die, someday..." she whispered, her head hanging again. "...They hate light you know...he hates it. ..Too bad..humans can't use light magic...heh...heh..."

"Alexis-"

"Goodbye Kratos, I'm sorry," she said. "I'm so sorry for everything..."

Then suddenly he was alone in the dark room, not a trace of the red light, not a trace of blood, not even a smell. Not even an imprint of Alexis' skirt in the dust where she had just been laying.

* * *

He fell silent, staring out into the trees, ignoring Lloyd's eyes boring into the side of his face.

"Th…that's…"

"…I realized quite quickly that I was not going to return to my original age," Kratos said, cutting him off. "...Yet I could not face my mother again, or Yuan. Not only had I …hurt them, but now I could not even return to their lives if I wanted to."

He lowered his chin to his chest, closing his eyes.

"And I did want to. I had nothing left then, in that false life I had promised myself…I had never had a future there to begin with. I realized..how foolish I was."

They sat in silence for just a minute before Lloyd spoke up.

"So…when I fought it in Shadow's Temple…she's still stuck with that monster? Did you ever find out how to kill it for real? There has to be something-"

"Who knows," Kratos said, frowning. "I tried using Judgment on it, when I came to aid you…it seemed to hurt him, but it was your sword that ultimately finished him off. Whether that actually killed him..we have no way of knowing."

"So she could be stuck in Neflhiem? With that thing?" Lloyd frowned deeply, guilt creeping into his eyes.

"…It went much as I told you after that," Kratos continued, hoping to distract his son from the unpleasant thought. "I wandered, I participated in the experiment that stopped my internal clock, and then I reunited with Yuan, and at that point Mithos and Martel."

"What about your mom? Didn't you ever see her again?"

The Seraph was quiet a moment but responded quicker than he expected.

"Yes, while journeying with Mithos I did run into her again…I apologized to her, then…"

Lloyd smiled hesitantly, noticing the odd little smile on his father's face.

"That's …good then." He hesitated. "Dad?"

"Yes?"

"Did you…actually …love Alexis?"

"…" Kratos shook his head. "I was infatuated with her, but I did not love her. It wasn't until I met your mother I realized what love was, but I was fond of Alexis. She was my friend. Though I suspect she saw me more as a child is viewed by an elder cousin."

Lloyd cracked a weak smirk before he sighed, staring off into space again.

"…Is there any way we can save her?"

"That's just like you, Lloyd," Kratos said with a soft smile. "Your mother would be proud of you. …She asked the same thing, after she was done acting like she was jealous."

The teen laughed, shaking his head as he got to his feet, stretching his arms over his head.

"I don't know if there is a way to save her, or break the bond," Kratos admitted.

Lloyd said nothing as Kratos got to his own feet, though the brunette was apparently deep in thought. Kratos frowned a bit, eying his son.

"Yeah well, we can look into that tomorrow," he said. "Right now I'm hungry."

"Lloyd you don't have a need to eat." Kratos pointed out, knowing full well his son would ignore him.

"Come on Dad, let's get a bite to eat."

Kratos sighed, following Lloyd as the teen already started off down the path. They had stopped in Iselia so Colette could visit with her family, and Lloyd had spent a decent amount of time with Dirk as well. Kratos had been fine with that, sitting by Anna's grave, 'talking' to her…

That was until Lloyd came out, claiming Dirk had kicked him out because he was working on some hard project. So it was they had settled down, and Kratos had gotten into his story. Well, he didn't mind…any time with his son was very appreciated. He could survive a story or an eating-out.

So he didn't think much of it when he sat down at the table with his son, watching the boy scan the menu. The restaurant was new, only a few months old. It had sprung up in the rebuilding of the town, and had become pretty popular recently.

"Hello there, I'm Alexis, I'll be your waitress today."

Kratos froze and he noticed Lloyd flinch. Both swordsmen swept their eyes to the woman smiling at them, her green eyes sparkling. Kratos' mouth opened slightly, his eyes wide just a second before he reclaimed his demeanor. Lloyd hesitated, eyeing his father and then the woman. Obviously the young man labeled it off as coincidence, because he told her his order.

"All right, what for you then?" she smiled down at Kratos.

Kratos merely looked at her a moment, silent.

"…Are you all right sir?"

"I- yes," he said, frowning. "I'll just have what he's having."

The waitress nodded and walked off. Once again Lloyd eyed his father, but Kratos gave nothing away for him to speculate on, so simply forgot about it. Kratos sat stiffly, though Lloyd couldn't tell the difference, and refrained from talking much the entire meal.

"Here's your bill," she said when she collected their plates, smiling as she placed it on the table.

She left before either of the could speak and Kratos frowned, picking up the slip of paper to read it.

He choked.

"Dad?"

Scrawled on the bottom was a small note.

'It's on me, thank you, Kratos.'

He had to think up a lie quickly to stop Lloyd from trying to find out what had made him smile like that.

**Awwww it's donnnneeee 3 *hugs it* Goodbye fic, was fun writing you. **

**Hope you all liked and thanks for reading **


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